PUBLIC COMMENT LETTER

Re:    Evaluating policy options to encourage the

capture and beneficial use of coal mine methane

To Whom It May Concern:

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on House Bill 1643 and Senate Bill 1121 as the Department of Energy investigates methods of promoting the capture and beneficial use of coal mine methane.   I am Aaron Davis, Senior Engineer with Keyrock Energy, LLC, a methane capture and destruction company with projects spanning six states, including Virginia.  Keyrock is responsible for generating nearly 80% of all coal mine methane offsets in the United States.  With a background in engineering, law, and business, my perspective on the issue at hand is both varied and balanced.  In particular, my experience with Keyrock has allowed me to fully appreciate the widespread, positive impact of methane capture and destruction.  To that end, I would like to present the following points of comment:

1. Keyrock embraces methane pipeline injection but acknowledges that this is rarely the most feasible option.
2. Methane destruction is an excellent alternative that positively impacts the environment in the present and future.
3. Methane destruction is a proven alternative that promotes and ensures the safety of coal miners.

Arguably, the best use of captured coal mine methane is its injection into pipelines for public and private consumption.  Keyrock fully supports pipeline injection and utilizes the same where a project produces quality methane and has access to adequate infrastructure that makes processing the gas for injection a viable option.  One Keyrock property in Illinois extracts gas from 16 abandoned underground coal mines using over 30 wells and a collection system comprising more than 50 miles of pipeline.  Mine gas is transported to a centralized gas processing plant, where contaminants are removed and the gas is pressurized for delivery into the natural gas pipeline.  This is the exception, however, not the norm.  The reality is that many projects result in gas that is simply not injectable because of its quality and/or quantity.  Nearly all methane projects are located in remote areas, such as rural Appalachia.  The notorious lack of infrastructure makes construction of a cryogenic gas improvement facility – and consequently pipeline injection – not only economically impractical, but unfeasible.  

While injecting methane into a pipeline may be ideal, conditions (namely methane quality and adequate infrastructure) rarely are.  Consequently, methane destruction is a viable alternative.  Methane is a known greenhouse gas that is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 100-year period and 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period.[1]  Methane is continuously emitted from coal mines, both active and abandoned.  It leaches into the ground, contaminates water sources, negatively impacts surface vegetation, and creates perpetual concerns for fires and explosions for the surface owners.  According to the E.P.A., coal mining and abandoned mines produce approximately 8% of the United States’ total methane emissions.[2]  Destroying methane alleviates these concerns.  Further, the by-products of methane combustion are proven to be better and much less detrimental to our environment than the emission of methane.   Essentially, coal mine methane destruction can circumvent decades of negative environmental impact.

In addition to its environmental benefits, methane destruction also plays a critical role in ensuring coal miner safety.  Mines liberate methane as operations are conducted.  As a result, it is continuously monitored and maintained according to state and federal regulations.  But despite extensive regulations and oversight, methane has still been the cause of innumerable explosions and fatalities since the inception of mining.  As coal mine operations develop, areas that have already been mined are sealed off from the rest of the active mine.  Regardless of these precautions, though, all seals leak into the active mine ventilation system and continue to threaten the lives of miners.

For reference, at one active West Virginia coal operation, a sealed area was leaking methane into the active mine.  Every barometric pressure drop forced methane through the seals into the active mine.  At times, this was so significant that the mine operator was forced to cease production and remove miners from the affected area.  Keyrock was contracted to drill into the mine and destroy methane from this sealed area.  The requisite permits and licenses were quickly secured and Keyrock was able to drill, apply a negative pressure to the sealed area, and set up a flare to destroy methane.  This negative pressure created an equilibrium such that the decreases in barometric pressure no longer resulted in methane leaking into the active mine.  The MSHA data immediately preceding the flare installation showed that a staggering ~7 million cubic feet of methane per day was being liberated from the mine.  However, after the installation of the Keyrock flare, the MSHA data showed that the methane liberation dropped to 5.5 million cubic feet per day (“cfd”).  This is an astonishing 1,500,000 cfd reduction in methane liberation!

And the emission of lethal amounts of methane are by no means isolated.  Consequently, deadly mine disasters have continued into this century – disasters that never fail to garner an onslaught of media attention and scrutinization of the mining industry.  Consider the following recent disasters:

• Sago Mine Explosion
  • 12 fatalities, January 2, 2006
  • This mine’s daily methane emission was 92,460 cfd.[3]
• Darby Mine No.1 Explosion
  • 5 fatalities, May 20, 2006
  • This mine’s daily methane emission was 38,707 cfd.[4]
• Upper Big Branch Mine Explosion
  • 29 fatalities, April 5, 2010
  • This mine’s daily methane emission was 1,067,510 cfd.[5]

We could only speculate as to the lives that might’ve been spared if methane destruction techniques had been implemented at any of these mines.

Of the six states where Keyrock engages in methane operations, Virginia has proven to be the most challenging both in terms of regulatory procedures and the length of time it takes to follow the same (often up to 18 months).  In the state of Virginia, a coal mine can secure all the necessary permits and licenses, and comply with all the regulatory requirements to begin mining operations…all while continuously emitting methane, creating imminent risks to the environment and to the lives of miners.  But the moment a flare is set up to destroy that same deadly gas and protect the lives of those working at the face of that same coal mine, the methane destruction process comes to a screeching halt.  The presence of the flare triggers the involvement of the Virginia Oil and Gas Board and, under the current legislative framework, its processes and procedures can be exceedingly tedious and time-intensive.  The result?  Tens of thousands of dollars and countless hours spent in title searching, document drafting, and regulatory hurdle-jumping. 

The enormous task of conducting a thorough oil and gas title search is evidenced by the tens of millions of dollars that are currently tied up in escrow waiting for a determination of the proper royalty owner.  At the same time, thousands of opportunities for methane destruction are ripe throughout the coal fields where methane poses either a danger to the environment, a threat to human life, difficulties for the landowner, or all three.  In addition to the important work of destroying methane, these operations could provide much-needed job opportunities.

There is a tremendous need for viable methane capture, use, and destruction in Virginia.  Keyrock is already involved in promising operations within the state, but this involvement has highlighted several serious difficulties.  I believe that an alternative could be devised whereby methane destruction operations could commence in a provisional manner as the title searching is being conducted and regulatory compliance is being achieved.  It is not uncommon for such temporary or conditional permits to be issued in a variety of circumstances.  By issuing such a permit, the state of Virginia could allow the critical function of methane destruction to be performed, subject to oversight, until all requirements are met.  This scenario would allow for thorough compliance, as well as the protection of the environment and the saving of lives.

Sincerely,

/s/ Aaron R. Davis

Aaron R. Davis, P.E., J.D., MBA