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Unintended mitigation benefits of China's coal de-capacity policies on methane emissions

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  • Guo, Jinling
  • Gao, Junlian
  • Yan, Kejia
  • Zhang, Bo

Abstract

Coal de-capacity policies are often used to promote the integration of coal resources and optimize the production structure in China. This study used a bottom-up approach to evaluate the unintended effect of China's coal de-capacity policies on methane emissions mitigation from 2011 to 2019. Under the effect of such policies, the closed coal capacity was 46% of the total coal capacity in 2011. A total of 9567 coal mines with 1610 Mt of capacity were closed. The capacity of low CH4-content coal mines accounted for 77% in 2019, and the capacity of high and outburst CH4-content coal mines decreased by 9% compared to 2011. The adjustment in coal production structure in turn affects coal mine methane emission intensity, hence the national average coal mine emission factor decreased from 9 m3/t in 2011 to 8 m3/t in 2019. The coal de-capacity policies generated a cumulative 10.70 Tg of methane emissions mitigation from 2011 to 2019, even with rebounded coal production. As the number of coal mine closures continues to increase, the priority phase-out of high and outburst CH4-content mines will further lead to greater methane mitigation. In the future, more attention should be paid to methane emissions from abandoned mines.

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  • Guo, Jinling & Gao, Junlian & Yan, Kejia & Zhang, Bo, 2023. "Unintended mitigation benefits of China's coal de-capacity policies on methane emissions," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 181(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:181:y:2023:i:c:s0301421523003038
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2023.113718
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