What does it mean when people say something is a "dirty energy source?"?

Question

What does it mean when people say something is a "dirty energy source?"?

Answer 1

What type of energy are we talking about?

Answer 2

Emissions are typically dirty. producing something other than CO2 and H2O.  There might be sulfur, mercury, etc., in the emissions, before the emissions are cleaned up.

Answer 3

Typically, something that emits a great deal of air or water pollution while burned or used up.  High-sulfur coal is a good example.

Answer 4

Fossil Fuel source. Coal, Oil, Gas.

Answer 5

More polluting than a clean energy source. A clean energy source tends to be renewable such as wind, tidal, solar.

As well as fossil fuels (gas, oil and coal, in order of increasing dirtiness), dirty energy sources can include combustion of biomass and waste to energy schemes. And nuclear as it generates lots of hazardous waste.

Modern, well designed power plants burning 'dirty' fuels are much cleaner than twenty or thirty years ago, with much less sulphur, dioxins and other toxins entering the atmosphere.

Answer 6

releases green house gases into the atmosphere

coal, etc.