Many of the heavy metals released in the mining and burning of coal are environmentally and biologically toxic elements, such as lead, mercury, nickel, tin, cadmium, antimony, and arsenic, as well as radio isotopes of thorium and strontium. Small amounts of heavy metals can be necessary for health, but too much may cause acute or chronic toxicity (poisoning). A variety of chemicals (mostly metals) are associated with coal that are either found in the coal directly or in the layers of rock that lie above and between the seams of coal. The heavy metal content of coal varies by coal seam and geographic region. Coal contains many heavy metals, as it is created through compressed organic matter containing virtually every element in the periodic table - mainly carbon, but also heavy metals. Heavy metal refers to any metallic chemical element that has a high density and is toxic or poisonous at low concentrations.
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