Research shows China had 670,000 smog-related deaths in 2012

Researchers attempting to put a monetary cost on the environmental effects of heavy coal usage have found that 670,000 people died in 2012 from smog-related causes, while the environmental and health cost came out to RMB260 per ton of coal produced and used in 2012, South China Morning Post reported. The study found that more than 70% of the population was exposed to pollution levels in excess of the government’s acceptable level for air quality, and 157 million people lived in areas that exceeded the World Health Organization’s recommendation by tenfold. China currently relies on coal for 70% of its energy.