NEW PERSPECTIVES ON KENTUCKY'S COAL RESOURCES: FUTURE TRENDS

Kentucky has two distinct coal fields. The Eastern Kentucky Coal Field occurs along the western margin of the Central Appalachian Basin. Although this area has an estimated 53 billion tons (BT) of remaining coal resources, production has steadily decreased over the past five years. This trend, which is occurring in other coal-producing states across the Appalachian Basin, is partially the result of declining reserves of thick coal, and stringent air quality standards mandated by the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. For example, of the 53 BT of remaining resources in eastern Kentucky 52 % is between 14 and 28 inches thick, which is too thin to underground mine by conventional methods. Although the Eastern Kentucky Coal Field is generally regarded overall as a low-sulfur coal resource, 22 % is in the 1.68 to 2.5 lbs SO2 / MMBTU category, which contains too much sulfur to be burned without SO2 control technology. Other factors that have contributed to a decline in production include intense competition from low-sulfur western U.S. coal, and a large-scale trend towards the use of natural gas for new electric power production facilities.

The Western Kentucky Coal Field is the southern tip of the Illinois Basin and has an estimated 36 billion tons of remaining resources. As most of the economically mineable coals in western Kentucky are high in sulfur (typically more than 3 %), coal production in this area has been severely impacted, with a nearly 40 % decline in production during the last decade. This trend is likely to continue as many coal-burning electric utilities have chosen to switch from using high to low sulfur coal, instead of installing SO2 emissions control technology such as flue gas desulfurization. Hence, an important and abundant energy resource is being progressively idled.

The economic production of coal bed methane from Kentucky coal beds may be an effective way to use this vast resource in an environmentally sound manner. Preliminary results suggest the presence of potentially economic coal bed methane in Kentucky coal beds. Other factors that could impact the use of Kentucky coal are the implementation of fluidized bed combustion and integrated gasification combined cycle technology. Both of these technologies can use low grade coal (i.e., high ash, high sulfur) in an environmentally acceptable manner.