Capturing methane from coal faces hurdles in West

Efforts to reduce the greenhouse-gas impact of coal mining operations are running into obstacles in the West, writes Jodi Peterson of High Country News. Mining releases large amounts of methane gas into the atmosphere, but it can be captured and burned as an energy source, neutralizing its damaging effect on the environment. But while capturing methane for fuel is a popular step in coal mining east of the Mississippi River, producing enough energy each year to heat 600,000 homes, the western half of the U.S. has yet to catch on.

The primary difficulty faced in methane-capture programs is that most coal mines are located on federal land. This means coal companies are unable to sell or use the methane without owning natural-gas rights. At the same time, gas pipelines are much farther from coal mines in the West, requiring more capital to develop the infrastructure for methane programs, while lower prices for natural gas in the West make methane projects less profitable.

Cultural differences also affect program development. In the Eastern U.S., “some coal companies now think of themselves as energy companies, and they make a lot of money from gas,” says Pamela Franklin, director of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Coalbed Methane Outreach Program. “Coal companies in the West think of themselves as coal companies. Branching out into different resources is not something they think of culturally.” (Read more)