Coal Bed Methane

Coal bed methane (CBM) can typically be found in coal beds that have not
been strip-mined or that are too far underground for strip mining. In these
areas, the beds act as reservoirs, holding and releasing methane based on
the porosity of the coal. Even sites that have been deemed uneconomical for
coal mining may contain usable CBM if the extraction is simpler, and less
expensive, than that of coal mining.
Coal bed methane is similar to natural gas, differing only in the way that it is
formed and stored in the Earth's crust. Natural gas itself is considered to be
the 'cleanest' fossil fuel, and is therefore an attractive alternative to coal. In
2003, CBM supplied 7% of the natural gas in the U.S., and it continues to
grow each year.
CBM is extracted from coal beds through the drilling of wells. However,
unlike drilling for natural gas, large amounts of water must be pumped from
the coal bed area in order to depressurize the bed. Once the water is
removed, the methane is able to escape from the coal and flow into the well
itself. A typical well can produce CBM for up to 15 years ? a much shorter
life-span than that of a coal mine. However, unlike a coal mine, the later
years generally produces the most methane since the well contains less
water allowing the release of more CBM.
While natural gas is considered to be a relatively clean energy source, the
environmental impacts of extracting CBM are still being assessed. A main
concern is that water must be removed in order to release the methane. It
can pose a unique challenge since the water typically has a high salinity
level, therefore it cannot be introduced into local freshwater ecosystems
without the potential for adverse effects.
Several methods are used to dispose of the well water; the most common is
to return the water into the subsurface rock formations. Another approach is
to construct holding, or infiltration, ponds. Yet, oftentimes the ponds are
unlined which can lead to seepage into subsurface stream channels. In
colder regions, the water is frozen in the winter and the salts separated out,
so the water can then be discharged. Most freshwater extracted can be used
for irrigation of crop or farmland. Scientists continue to do research on
environmentally safe methods to either dispose of or reuse the extracted
water.
CBM wells can also contribute to a process known as ?methane migration,?
which occurs when the methane leaks into populated areas and

contaminates a water source. Although methane migration can occur

naturally or can stem from coal mining operations, some believe that the
extraction of coal bed methane ? along with the additional well
development ? amplifies the migration.
Although there is the potential for negative environmental effects associated
with CBM, its extraction and utilization does keep some methane that would
otherwise be released during coal mining out of the atmosphere. As a
greenhouse gas, methane is believed to be the most powerful of all warming
agents. Limiting any amount that could be released into the atmosphere is
not only beneficial for the environment, its use adds to our economic base
since the extraction collects natural gas that would otherwise be lost during
the coal mining process.
Updated by Dawn Anderson
.

Coal Bed Methane Extraction

Extreme Energy
Fracking is just a symptom of a much wider problem. As easier to extract
energy resources are exhausted by the unsustainable energy consumption
of the present system, we are resorting to ever more extreme methods of
energy extraction. Over the last century the exploitation of fossil fuels has

moved from tunnel mining for coal and drilling shallow oil wells to tearing
apart whole mountains and drilling in a mile or more deep of ocean.
As existing energy resources deplete the default response has been to just
been to try harder. Dig or drill deeper, go after lower quality resources or
move on to more remote location. This increasing effort has consequences:
increasing pollution, more dangerous working conditions, greater
greenhouse gas emissions, more land use and less resources available to
other sectors of society.
At present we are on a course which leads towards a world dominated by
energy extraction, one where most of the energy produced is used to run
the extraction processes while people live and die in its toxic shadow. The
present systems addiction to massive amounts of energy is driving this
headlong rush towards oblivion and unless something is done to stop it we
will all be dragged down into hell with it.
Tar Sands, Mountain Top Removal, Deep Water Drilling, Biofuels and
Fracking are all symptoms of this scramble to suck the last and most
difficult to reach drops out of our planet. Even more extreme extraction
methods are being contemplated such as Oil Shale and Methane Hydrates,
while existing methods are slowly growing more extreme as easiest to
extract resources are depleted.
Coal Bed Methane (CBM)
See this amazing summary http://www.fraw.org.uk/publications/eseries/e11/e11c-fracking_and_coalbed_methane.pdf , Available for printing
in our Resources section
Coal Bed Methane is methane (natural gas) trapped in coal seams
underground. To extract the gas, after drilling into the seam, it is necessary
to pump large amounts of water out of the coal seam to lower the pressure.
It is often also necessary to frack the seam to extract the gas. There are a
similar catalogue of negative environmental and social effects as with
Shale Gas. This includes methane migration, toxic water contamination, air
pollution, increased carbon emissions and a general industrialisation of the

countryside. Impacts that are specific to CBM include depletion of the water
table and potentially subsidence.
In common with other unconventional gas extraction, such as Shale Gas,
CBM wells do not produce large amounts of gas per well and production
declines very quickly. It is therefore necessary to drill large numbers of
wells, covering a huge swaths of the landscape. CBM exploitation began in
the US and over 55,000 CBM well have been drilled in the last decade or
so, mostly in the western states (Colorado, New Mexico and Wyoming in
particular). In Australia, where it is know as Coal Seam Gas (CSG), over
5,000 CBM wells have been drilled in Queensland in the last few years and
the industry is aggressively expanding into New South Wales. In the UK
CBM is more advanced than Shale Gas and full scale production may
begin soon.
Thanks to http://frack-off.org.uk/fracking-hell/ for this description.