On 26 February 2023 the International Centre of Excellence on CMM in Poland and the UNECE Group of Experts on CMM and Just Transition, participated in a sesion titled Methane from coal mines in Poland – effective emission reduction in the context of climate protection, which was delivered within the framework of the XXXIII School of Underground Mining held by the Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Faculty of the Mining and Geoengineering of the AGH University of Science and Technology.
Throughout the event 13 presentations were delivered addressing not only the environmental impact of methane but also focusing on mining safety and the economic potential of methane utilization for economic purposes. The following 11 were prepared by the representatives of the institutions forming ICE-CMM in Poland:
- Coal and methane from coal seams in the light of "State Raw Materials Policy" and new EU regulations (by Mr. Janusz Jureczka from the Polish Geological Institute – National Research Institute)
- Report on methane emissions from Polish coal mines (Zbigniew Lubosik and Mr. Tomasz Goliwąs from the Central Mining Institute - GIG)
- Real possibilities of capturing and utilizing methane from coal mines in Poland (by Mr. Nikodem Szlązak and Ms. Justyna Swolkień from AGH University of Science and Technology)
- Methane drainage in underground mining: Safety of extraction and environmental benefits (by Mr. Marek Borowski from AGH University of Science and Technology)
- Assessment of the impact of complex uncertainty in methane volume measurement discharged through a ventilation shaft on the emission size into the atmosphere in Polish coal mining (by Mr. Henryk Kopton and Mr. Tomasz Goliwąs from GIG)
- Study of the effectiveness of methane drainage in a multi-seam coal mine using directional long-range drilling – a case study (by Ms. Małgorzata Słota-Valim, Mr. Wiesław Szot, Mr. Piotr Łętkowski, Mr. Piotr Ruciński, and Mr. Krzysztof Miłek from the Oil and Gas Institute - National Research Institute)
- Analysis of the profitability of methane drainage technology using long directional holes in the Staszic-Wujek coal mine (by Ms. Alicja Krzemień from GIG and Mr. Grzegorz Plonka from PGG SA)
- Distribution of methane capture using classical drainage and directional drilling in IC and IIC walls in the 501 seam of the Staszic-Wujek coal mine (by Mr. Arnold Przystolik, Mr. Eugeniusz Krause, Mr. Jacek Skiba, Mr. Bartłomiej Jura from GIG, and Mr. Marek Borowski from AGH University of Science and Technology)
- Impact of natural hazards on the exploitation of the planned Wall D-5 in seam 358/1 at the Budryk Coal Mine (by Mr. Łukasz Pabian and Mr. Wojciech Pieczykolan from Jastrzębska Spółka Węglowa S.A., KWK Budryk, and Mr. Marcin Dreger and Mr. Piotr Celary - Central Measurement and Research Laboratory).
- Energy from methane as the main goal of JSW S.A.'s environmental strategy (by Mr. Artur Badylak from JSW S.A.)
- Reduction of methane emissions from post-mining products to minimize its inflow into ventilation air - assumptions for the implementation of the REM project (by Mr. Aleksander Wrana and Mr. Zbigniew Luboskik from GIG)
At the end of the session, a representative of UNECE delivered a presentation introducing to the participants activities of the UNECE Expert Group on Coal Mine Methane and Just Transition focused on reducing methane emissions from the coal industry, increasing safety in underground coal mines, and preparing coal mining regions for energy transition.