As governments around the world wrestle with the problem of how to urgently reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, some genius has just come up with an idea of how to create a whole lot more! Underground Coal Gasification (UCG) is a process where coal and gas reserves – previously deemed unreachable – are set alight underground and the emissions captured.
Whilst not exactly new, pilot projects of this crazy technology have recently been promoted to create fuel or feedstock (called “Syngas”) for a range of chemical products. UCG is being sold on the basis that it saves time and money in mining, and prevents mines and waste dumps scarring the landscape. On the flip side, as the fire burns along the coal seam, the space created can lead to collapsing of the overlying geology making the land unstable and leading to groundwater contamination with shale gas and toxic by-products – as tragically revealed recently in Queensland.
Subsidence may also supply oxygen to underground fires, allowing the coal seams to burn indefinitely. Earlier this year, Australians witnessed the difficulties of extinguishing the uncontrolled coal fire at Morwell mine. Imagine the added complexities of this situation underground, with unknown unknown escape pathways for released toxins. In short, UCG is about as good an idea as using thalidomide to treat morning sickness…
