SAY NO TO A NUCLEAR AUSTRALIA
Coal Seam Methane Extraction
For many years now, miners have known that coal seams produce methane gas. It used to be that this gas was merely a hazard to be released before the miners could even think about taking any of the 'valuable' coal from the ground. Now though, we have realised that the release of that gas is a massive waste of what is another valuable resource.Methane is a flammable gas that when released into the atmosphere contributes to global warming. It is also a very good energy producer when burnt, producing less carbon dioxide than other hydrocarbon fuels. Methane gas (often called bio gas or natural gas) has many current uses, including being used for heating, cooking and as a vehicle fuel.
Methane production comes in many forms. It can be extracted from the rotting of organic matter including livestock manure, wastewater sludge, human refuse in landfills, or any other biodegradable feedstock (vegetation). Even the ocean and wetlands produce methane.
But the major source of methane is to extract it from the ground, where it is produced in large volumes by the coal under our feet. This method is known as Coal Seam (or Coal Bed) Extraction. The methane which is in the coal is released when the coal seam is depressurised. To do this, the water within the seam is pumped from the ground, causing a drop in pressure. This forces the methane to desorb from the coal, and this is when it is captured, compressed and piped to market.
There are a number of Australian coal mines that have been using this method for some time now, including Santos, which has been utilising methane gas extracted from several mines in the Bowen Basin in Qld. Moura Mine, located in the Bowen Basin in Queensland, established a commercial coal mine methane business next to its coal mining operations in 1996. And in New South Wales, the Appin and Tower Collieries, operated by BHP Billiton, produce electric power by using drained coal mine methane. The Australian Coal Association has some more information here.
The Australian government has had projects in the pipeline since early 2003, and continues to fund projects today.
Do We Want This?
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How To Be A World Power... Conservatively.Get paid to produce power.
Shame, Peter, Shame.
Alas, I fear that one of my idols has sold out.
Transportation Has Come a Long Way.
Shell Withdraws from the London Array Wind Farm.
Wind Power is Big Business
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Can We Rely on Renewable Energy?
Cloncurry to get a Solar Thermal Tower
Coal Seam Methane Extraction
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Controversy as FutureGen Plans are Cancelled.
Sustainable Houses.
PM's Nuclear Plant Denial
Some answers, maybe?
Alternative Energy Sources... Clean Coal
Thanks to Snowy.
Interesting Reading.
Altrnative Energy Sources... Geothermal
Conspiracy Theories... A Nuclear State
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The Need To Know
Remember Chernobyl... April 26, 1986.
66% of surveyed Australians DO NOT want nuclear power. WHY ARE WE STILL HAVING THIS DEBATE?