President Joe Biden cited national security concerns on Friday as he blocked the proposed takeover of U.S. Steel, but Biden's move to scuttle Nippon Steel's $14.9 billion deal also carries enormous implications for climate change and clean air.The global steel industry is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, producing more CO2 than many major countries, and some U.S. Steel mills are among the biggest sources of toxic air pollution in their states.
As some steelmakers are beginning to embrace cleaner technology, climate and clean air advocates say Nippon's plan would have slowed the transition to greener steel by extending the life of dirty, old coal-burning furnaces.'Whoever owns and operates U.S. Steel facilities must invest in clean, modern iron and steel production that protects public health and good union jobs,' Hilary Lewis, steel director at Industrious Labs, told Newsweek via email.Industrious Labs is a research and advocacy group working to clean up heavy industry such as steel, aluminum and cement. By analyzing industry data, the group found that U.S. Steel's blast furnaces and coke ovens—the source of coal-based fuel—belched 14 million tons of greenhouse gases a year.'Nippon had planned to continue this health-harming, and climate-harming pollution,' Lewis said.Nippon's proposed deal with U.S. Steel included investments for upkeep of the coal-fired furnaces, a move that Lewis argued would lock in coal consumption and pollution for more than a decade. Her group and others in clean tech instead want the steel industry to invest in emerging cleaner alternatives.'Clean steelmaking is the future, and making these investments now is a critical step to ensuring our global competitiveness for generations to come,' Lewis said.The Industrious Labs report also found that annual toxic air pollution from those steel and coke coal facilities contributed to an estimated 200 premature deaths and 55,000 asthma attacks.The U.S
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