Methane Mitigation: Bridging Language, Science, Global Citizenship & Community Arts In Climate Abatement

The action of reducing the emissions to atmosphere - mitigation of gaseous emissions such as carbon dioxide or methane

An important GHG with over 84 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide when first released over a twenty-year timeline. Methane has the chemical formula CH4 (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms.)

The coal industry is a significant source of methane emissions, as even abandoned mines can still release it through natural seepage from the coal left in the ground, which is too costly to bring to the surface.

Methane is one of the most important human-generated industrial sources of greenhouse gas emissions. As a gas, it has caused nearly 30% of the rise in global temperatures since the Industrial Revolution.

The term given to flammable natural gasses released from coal and the surrounding rocks due to mining.

Digging deep into the earth using shafts and tunnels to extract minerals such as coal, leaving the above rock which is not wanted in place. This type of mining is the focus of methane mitigation as you can measure and capture the methane emitted by the industrial process.

Remove all rock above the mineral to be mined. It is usually used when the mineral seam is close to the surface of the ground (usually less than 200m.). It can be cheaper and safer but destroys all the associated habitat. Here, methane is given off to the surrounding air. Mitigating this methane is technically difficult and is in early stages of development.

Where the coal contains a relatively high amount of gas. The amount differs depending on the coal geology and mine location.

Because of methane's short lifetime, tackling this gas brings quick climate benefits. According to many climate scientists, rapidly reducing methane emissions is the most effective strategy to keep the 1.5-degree global warming goal within reach. Methane can be concentrated in some geographical regions, so its targeting can be super effective. Aaldert van Amerongen (SRON) of the Dutch Clear Air Consortium used the term 'low-hanging fruit' when considering methane's ease of address when he said, 'This is the low-hanging fruit in the fight against climate change.'

Methane is produced during coal mining (I have been told that you can sometimes hear a hiss as the gas is discharged from the coal on extraction.) The mine is kept safe by dilution of methane from the coal with fresh air from the surface drawn through the mine by ventilation fans. This air is known as ventilation air. The small methane element of this air is called 'ventilation air methane' or VAM. The amount of methane in 'coal mine air' is relatively low and can vary between mines due to the coal type and actions taken by the industry to ensure it does not pollute the air the miners breathe. VAM is responsible for 60–70% of total methane emissions related to coal mining.

A chemical compound containing carbon where bonds link one or more atoms of this carbon to other elements (most commonly hydrogen.)

Organic compounds, including methane, that have a high gas pressure at room temperature and low boiling point. They are found in perfumes, but in mining, those in this list are pollutants regulated by law. Most are not toxic but can harm humans and the environment. Methane is a VOC.

A specific list of pollutants which cause harm to humans and nature. Methane is not on this list, but its derivatives are. These compounds are regulated under law.

An air pollution control machine that destroys up to 99% of VOCs, HAPs, and odours by converting these harmful gases using heat into CO2 and H2O before releasing them into the atmosphere. These relatively simple structures, in essence, clean the air. Each RTO is set differently depending on the air it purifies and what is the air's constituent parts. Engineers balance three components to get the most effective 'cleaning': time, temperature and turbulence. These wonder machines can produce energy, which the plant can use to reduce costs and carbon footprint.

As methane mitigation devices, they are so important to install now as whilst they are not the most sophisticated answer, they are proven, cost-effective and available now. So why wait? Mining needs to be the next frontier the RTOs conquer.

The next-generation regenerative thermal oxidiser - a pollution control machine like the RTO, but instead it uses a catalyst (something that doesn't chemically change but speeds up a reaction) to reduce the heat needed to convert harmful gases into CO2 and H2O. Precious metals, including platinum, palladium, and rhodium, are used as catalysts depending on the chemical components in the gas to be treated. At the moment, these are just 'concepts' developed by boffins in universities but are the widely agreed successor of the RTO.

A rating scale used in Functional Safety divided into four to rank how likely a component/system is to fail and cause something dangerous. The instruments/systems rated at one have the highest failure rates, with those rated at four being the most robust. The highest-rated products are used in the most dangerous industries, such as nuclear, where failure could have catastrophic effects.