Currently, natural gas is considered to be the most desirable of the fossil fuels, because it is thought to be better for the environment. Within Indiana, the construction of new gas-fired merchant power plants is significantly increasing the demand for natural gas in the state.
Because of increased demand for natural gas, there has been a surge of nationwide interest in the development of coal-bed methane (CBM). As reserves of natural gas decline, CBM could fill an important role in domestic energy production. Currently, CBM is estimated to be meeting 9 percent of the dry natural gas demand in the United States, and the production of Indiana’s coal-bed methane could provide additional supplies for energy generation.
Because extraction of methane from coal
beds involves pumping out large quantities of water that is sometimes saline,
economical methods for environmentally responsible disposal of such water are
being investigated. Another environmental concern is that nearby aquifers can
become contaminated from coal-bed methane operations. Information about these
and other issues is available from the United States Geological Survey (Fact
Sheet FS-019-97).