7. Environmental Costs of Strip Mining of Texas Lignite Area stripping Overburden not high sulfur Reclamation cost C T = 0.055 C A /T C T = Cost in cents per ton T = coal seam thickness in feet C A = reclamation cost in dollars per acre ($200 in Texas, adequate rainfall for revegetation)

8. Table 3-5 Estimates of Land Reclamation Costs for Surface Mining of Coal Coal Type$/Acre$/Ton Coal$/10 12 Btu Midwest Lignite500-4,5000.10-0.258,000-22,000 Western Coal1,500-6,0000.20-1.0011,500-59,000 Eastern Coal4,000-6,5002.00-5.0090,000-230,000 Basis: 1980 constant dollars.

9. Source: EIA-7A Coal Production Report, file data Dollars per Short Ton Average Mine Price of Coal by Supply Region, Survey Data 1999-2002

10. Coal Bed Methane…. Methane physically adsorbs onto coal Can desorb methane by.. –Reducing pressure (pumping water) –Injecting carbon dioxide, nitrogen, etc. Features…. –Very shallow production (cheap) –Plentiful--nearly every coal bed has methane with it –Must produce a lot of water –Economical at >2$/MCF

11. Producing Coal Bed Methane From Wiser, 2000 Desorption of methane Produce water and methane