Guizhou province is located in the southwest of China, see map. It has a population of 38 million and its GDP ranks 26 among 31 provinces. Recently, coal production and the coal-based energy industry have become one of the fastest growing industries accounting for 8.5% GDP (2005) in Guizhou. Guizhou has the 5th largest coal reserve in China. The total amount is estimated at 241.9 billion tons, among which 49.9 billion tons are guaranteed and 192 billion tons are above 2000 meters depth.
In 2005 there were 2,143 coal mines in Guizhou producing more than 100 million tons of coal annually. Among these coal mines, only 20 of them are large, state-level mines, and 45 are medium, province-level mines. The remaining coal mines are small, village & township-level mines. According to their annual production records (2004), the 20 large mines (average 909,000 tons/year) and 45 medium mines (average 125,000 tons/year) contribute 23.83 million tons of coal, 23% of the total annual production. The small mines (average 39,000 ton/year), however, contribute 78.87 million tons of coal, 77% of the total annual production. However, these numbers are changing with recent government policies encouraging the consolidation of smaller coal mines into larger mines.
The coal industry is essential to Guizhou's economic and social development, yet current resource management tends to be wasteful and dangerous. The danger of methane in the coal mining industry in China is well known. Close to 6,000 miners died in 2005, many of these deaths related to methane explosions. However, the potential damage is not just at the local level, because out of the safety concerns, methane is habitually released directly to the atmosphere where it acts as a powerful green house gas.
Many of the Guizhou coal mines and the local government recognize the benefits of CMM recovery systems, and many projects are underway. However, at this time it is difficult to estimate the total amount of annual methane emission from all the coal mines, and how much is being captured and utilized, due to lack of data as well as the rapid progress occurring. This project aims to provide up to date and concrete information about the progress of CMM recovery and utilization in Guizhou. Please return to this page, as we will be updating the information throughout the life of the project. |
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