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At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources
USGS2021

Nitrogen and phosphorus sources and delivery from the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin: An update using 2012 SPARROW models

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) inputs throughout the Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) have been linked to the Gulf of Mexico hypoxia and water‐quality problems throughout the MARB. To describe N and P loading throughout the MARB, SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed attributes (SPARROW) models were previously developed based on nutrient inputs and management similar to 1992 and 2002. In this study, refined SPARROW models were developed with higher resolution basin delineation, updated (2012) source inputs, improved calibration (load) targets, and additional statistical techniques than used in the previous SPARROW models. Based on the refined models, consistent with past models, N and P loads/yields were the highest from the central part of the MARB (Corn Belt) and along the Mississippi River. Agricultural activities remained the most important N and P source, but more so for N because its input, which could now be distinguished from atmospheric deposition, could be estimated. Natural loss of P from geologic material throughout the MARB was an important source, contributing about 23% of the total P from the MARB, and resulted in specific areas, such as Kentucky and Tennessee, being larger sources of P than previously estimated. This information can help managers decide where efforts will have the largest effects (highest ranked areas) on reducing nutrient loading to the Gulf hypoxia and what are the most important sources of N and P in these areas.

Mississippi/Atchafalaya River Basin↗
USGS2013

Emerging methods for the study of coastal ecosystem landscape structure and change

Coastal landscapes are heterogeneous, dynamic, and evolve over a range of time scales due to intertwined climatic, geologic, hydrologic, biologic, and meteorological processes, and are also heavily impacted by human development, commercial activities, and resource extraction. A diversity of complex coastal systems around the globe, spanning glaciated shorelines to tropical atolls, wetlands, and barrier islands are responding to multiple human and natural drivers. Interdisciplinary research based on remote-sensing observations linked to process studies and models is required to understand coastal ecosystem landscape structure and change. Moreover, new techniques for coastal mapping and monitoring are increasingly serving the needs of policy-makers and resource managers across local, regional, and national scales. Emerging remote-sensing methods associated with a diversity of instruments and platforms are a key enabling element of integrated coastal ecosystem studies. These investigations require both targeted and synoptic mapping, and involve the monitoring of formative processes such as hydrodynamics, sediment transport, erosion, accretion, flooding, habitat modification, land-cover change, and biogeochemical fluxes.

International Journal of Remote Sensing↗
USGS1981

Economics and coal resource appraisal: strippable coal in the Illinois Basin ( USA)

Coal-resource appraisals generally describe the location and general characteristics of coal beds. Estimates are made of the average overburden depth (depth of the coal bed below the surface), bed thickness, and perhaps certain chemical properties of the coal [1]. Although such resource compilations represent an important initial step, neither they nor current estimates provide sufficient information to determine the costs of alternative options for National energy policy. Because coal is expected to provide an increasing part of future overall U.S. energy supply, it is crucial for long term planning that coalresource appraisals convey sufficient information regarding the degree of economic resource scarcity (escalation of unit costs for mining remaining deposits as the best deposits in an area are mined out) expected as coal consumption increases. However, assumptions embodied in most large-scale models of coal supply [13; 20] imply that the coal reserves that exist can be commercially produced as needed. As demonstrated by the embargo of 1973-1974 and more recent difficulties in obtaining crude oil, even a slight temporary commodity shortfall will result in significant economic losses when the commodity supplies a large proportion of the total energy used by an economy. For the United States, crude oil resource estimates did not give warning of a decline in domestic petroleum product. In this paper we argue that coal-resource estimates, as they are now made, will not give warning of future supply difficulties. A method for incorporating an economic dimension into appraisals of strippable coal resources is presented and is applied to a major U.S. coal-producing region, the Illinois part of the Illinois basin. Illinois accounts for nearly 70% of the demonstrated strippable coal reserve base of the Illinois basin [12]. In particular, a long-run incremental cost function (that is unit costs vs. cumulative reserves extracted) is estimated for strippable coal in Illinois. The estimated cost function exhibits an initial range over which costs increase at a constant rate-followed by a range where costs increase very rapidly and the function becomes quite inelastic. This long-run incremental cost function is significant for two reasons. Comparison of the demonstrated reserve base for strippable coal (14.8 billion tons) with cumulative production (since 1920 of 1.1 billion tons) might suggest that future depletion will not be significant when, in fact, the cost function presented here indicates otherwise. Because the only states having more reserves of strippable coal than Illinois are Montana and Wyoming [18], these results have implications for national coal-resource appraisal. Secondly, most models used to study the effects of alternative public policies in coal markets are static in nature [15; 16] and cannot consider the effects of increasing costs. Furthermore, models which are multi-period in nature [11; 13] appear to have little empirical basis for their assumptions regarding the escalation of production costs resulting from depletion. The plan of the paper is as follows. First a description of the analytical approach for constructing the long-run incremental cost-reserve function is discussed. Following this, the descriptions of the Illinois basin and the basic physical data are presented. In the concluding section, the main results are presented and their implications are explored

Southern Economic Journal↗
USGS2014

Conservation Action Planning: Lessons learned from the St. Marys River watershed biodiversity conservation planning process

Conservation Action Planning (CAP) is an adaptive management planning process refined by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and embraced worldwide as the Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation. The CAP process facilitates open, multi-institutional collaboration on a common conservation agenda through organized actions and quantified results. While specifically designed for conservation efforts, the framework is adaptable and flexible to multiple scales and can be used for any collaborative planning effort. The CAP framework addresses inception; design and development of goals, measures, and strategies; and plan implementation and evaluation. The specific components of the CAP include defining the project scope and conservation targets; assessing the ecological viability; ascertaining threats and surrounding situation; identifying opportunities and designing strategies for action; and implementing actions and monitoring results. In 2007, TNC and a multidisciplinary graduate student team from the University of Michigan's School of Natural Resources and Environment initiated a CAP for the St. Marys River, the connecting channel between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, and its local watershed. The students not only gained experience in conservation planning, but also learned lessons that notably benefited the CAP process and were valuable for any successful collaborative effort—a dedicated core team improved product quality, accelerated the timeline, and provided necessary support for ongoing efforts; an academic approach in preparation for engagement in the planning process brought applicable scientific research to the forefront, enhanced workshop facilitation, and improved stakeholder participation; and early and continuous interactions with regional stakeholders improved cooperation and built a supportive network for collaboration.

Michigan, Ontario↗
USGS2005

The effects of urgency to reach agreement on the process and outcome of multi-party natural resource negotiations

We studied seven hydropower license consultations to examine the role of a sense of urgency to reach agreement. Hydropower licensing consultations were studied because the statutory requirement for consultation encourages negotiation, all such consultations are similar, and a negotiated settlement is not a foregone result. Cases selected for analysis met screening criteria. Structured interviews were conducted with participants after the negotiations had been concluded. Respondent recollections were checked against the documentary record. A sense of urgency to reach agreement was a significant factor in the completion of these negotiations; where there was no shared sense of urgency, purposeful delay adversely affected the negotiations. Although a sense of urgency was experienced by at least one party in each case, only a shared sense of urgency at the end of the process proved significant. Delay did not prevent ultimate agreement but a shared sense of urgency brought speedier agreement and greater satisfaction with the negotiation.

International Journal of Organizational Theory and↗
USGS2007

Minimising visitor impacts to protected areas: The efficacy of low impact education programmes

Protected area managers, tourism providers, and other organisations commonly employ education programmes to address visitation-related impairment of natural and cultural resources, social conditions, and neighbouring communities. These programmes have different names (Leave No Trace, Codes of Conduct, Environmental Guidelines for Tourists) but share common objectives: to sustain opportunities for high quality visitor experiences while avoiding or minimising associated negative impacts to protected area resources, visitor experiences, and park neighbours. Theoretical and empirical research studies in the United States are reviewed to evaluate the efficacy of educational efforts that seek to encourage adoption of low impact behaviours. Findings reveal that most of the visitor education efforts evaluated did effectively alter visitor knowledge, behaviour and/or resource and social conditions in the intended direction. These findings, including discussions of message content, delivery, audience characteristics and theoretical grounding, provide insights for improving the efficacy of future educational efforts.

Journal of Sustainable Tourism↗
USGS2022

Multi-hazard risk analysis for the U.S. Department of the Interior: An integration of expert elicitation, planning priorities, and geospatial analysis

An integral part of disaster risk management is identifying and prioritizing hazards and their potential impacts in a meaningful way to support risk-reduction planning. There has been considerable use and subsequent criticism of threat prioritization efforts that simply compare likelihoods and consequences of plausible threats. This article summarizes a new mixed-methods and scalable approach for prioritizing risks in a multi-hazard, multi-objective, and multi-criteria organizational context. This approach integrates (1) hazard characterizations using subject-matter-expert (SME) elicitation, (2) expressed preferences in planning priorities provided by emergency managers, and (3) quantitative estimates of asset exposure to hazards using geospatial data and geographic-information-systems (GIS) software. We demonstrate this approach with a case study designed to support multi-hazard mitigation and response planning done by the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Emergency Management, which required a national understanding of the risks posed by 75 natural, technological, and adversarial hazards to DOI managed and administered lands, facilities, people, revenues, and resources. Results demonstrate that hazard priorities vary depending on the asset, scale, and risk-management context, thereby making the case that “one-size-fits-all” hazard rankings have limited utility or relevance to real-world, risk mitigation and response planning. Our results suggest that recognizing the risk-management context provides greater transparency, flexibility, and relevance in comparing threats than traditional likelihood-threat matrices or the use of hazard SMEs to decide for planners which hazard scenarios are emphasized in risk planning.

International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction↗
USGS2017

Development of a robust analytical framework for assessing landbird trends, dynamics and relationships with environmental covariates in the North Coast and Cascades Network

During 2015-2016, we completed development of a new analytical framework for landbird population monitoring data from the National Park Service (NPS) North Coast and Cascades Inventory and Monitoring Network (NCCN). This new tool for analysis combines several recent advances in modeling population status and trends using point-count data and is designed to supersede the approach previously slated for analysis of trends in the NCCN and other networks, including the Sierra Nevada Network (SIEN). Advances supported by the new model-based approach include 1) the use of combined data on distance and time of detection to estimate detection probability without assuming perfect detection at zero distance, 2) seamless accommodation of variation in sampling effort and missing data, and 3) straightforward estimation of the effects of downscaled climate and other local habitat characteristics on spatial and temporal trends in landbird populations. No changes in the current field protocol are necessary to facilitate the new analyses. We applied several versions of the new model to data from each of 39 species recorded in the three mountain parks of the NCCN, estimating trends and climate relationships for each species during 2005-2014. Our methods and results are also reported in a manuscript in revision for the journal Ecosphere (hereafter, Ray et al.). Here, we summarize the methods and results outlined in depth by Ray et al., discuss benefits of the new analytical framework, and provide recommendations for its application to synthetic analyses of long-term data from the NCCN and SIEN. All code necessary for implementing the new analyses is provided within the Appendices to this report, in the form of fully annotated scripts written in the open-access programming languages R and JAGS.

Natural Resource Report↗
USGS2022

Suppression of invasive fish in the west: Synthesis and suggestions for improvement

Reservoirs are ubiquitous features on the landscape of the western United States. Although reservoirs provide numerous benefits (e.g., irrigation, flood control, hydropower, recreational use), these systems are often a concern from an ecological perspective. Reservoirs support fisheries primarily composed of nonindigenous sport fishes that may become invasive and negatively influence recipient ecosystems. Furthermore, reservoirs alter adjacent riverine habitats, further increasing the threat of invasive fishes to aquatic systems. As such, most western natural resource management agencies focus considerable effort on managing the threat of invasive fish species. Unfortunately, controlling invasive fish is expensive and rarely effective because of a lack of clear objectives, appropriate fishing mortality, and long-term commitment. In an effort to improve management of invasive fish in the western United States, we reviewed existing literature to identify the steps necessary to effectively suppress these species. Specifically, we provide guidance on defining achievable objectives, assessing feasibility, evaluating success, and improving the efficiency of invasive fish suppression. This iterative approach provides managers with a framework to effectively address the challenge of suppressing invasive fish in the western United States.

North American Journal of Fisheries Management↗
USGS2000

Analytical verification of waterborne chemical treatment regimens in hatchery raceways

Chemical therapy for control and prevention of fish diseases is a necessary and common practice in aquaculture. Many factors affect the accuracy of a chemical treatment application, such as the functioning of the chemical delivery system, calculation of chemical quantities to be delivered, water temperature, geometry of the culture unit, inlet-outlet structure, the influence of aerators, wind movement, and measurement of water volumes and flow rates. Three separate trials were conducted at the Osceola Fish Hatchery, a facility of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, evaluating the accuracy of flow-through hydrogen peroxide treatments applied to 1, 3, or 9 raceways that were connected in series. Raceways were treated with 50 or 75 ??L/L of hydrogen peroxide for 30 min. Chemical concentrations were determined titrimetrically. The target treatment regimen was not realized in any of the applications. Chemical concentrations dropped and exposure times increased with each additional raceway treated in series. Single introduction of a therapeutant to more than three raceways in series is not recommended. Factors that interfered with the accuracy of the treatments were culture unit configuration, aeration, and flow rates. Several treatment modifications were identified that would result in more accurate chemical treatments.

North American Journal of Aquaculture↗
USGS2011

Adaptive management of natural resources-framework and issues

Adaptive management, an approach for simultaneously managing and learning about natural resources, has been around for several decades. Interest in adaptive decision making has grown steadily over that time, and by now many in natural resources conservation claim that adaptive management is the approach they use in meeting their resource management responsibilities. Yet there remains considerable ambiguity about what adaptive management actually is, and how it is to be implemented by practitioners. The objective of this paper is to present a framework and conditions for adaptive decision making, and discuss some important challenges in its application. Adaptive management is described as a two-phase process of deliberative and iterative phases, which are implemented sequentially over the timeframe of an application. Key elements, processes, and issues in adaptive decision making are highlighted in terms of this framework. Special emphasis is given to the question of geographic scale, the difficulties presented by non-stationarity, and organizational challenges in implementing adaptive management.

Journal of Environmental Management↗
USGS2012

The early bird gets the shrimp: Confronting assumptions of isotopic equilibrium and homogeneity in a wild bird population

1. Because stable isotope distributions in organic material vary systematically across energy gradients that exist in ecosystems, community and population structures, and in individual physiological systems, isotope values in animal tissues have helped address a broad range of questions in animal ecology. It follows that every tissue sample provides an isotopic profile that can be used to study dietary or movement histories of individual animals. Interpretations of these profiles depend on the assumption that metabolic pools are isotopically well mixed and in equilibrium with dietary resources prior to tissue synthesis, and they extend to the population level by assuming isotope profiles are identically distributed for animals using the same proximal dietary resource. As these assumptions are never fully met, studying structure in the variance of tissue isotope values from wild populations is informative. 2. We studied variation in δ 13 C, δ 15 N, δ 2 H and δ 18 O data for feathers from a population of eared grebes (Podiceps nigricollis) that migrate to Great Salt Lake each fall to moult feathers. During this time, they cannot fly and feed almost exclusively on superabundant brine shrimp (Artemia franciscana). The ecological simplicity of this situation minimized the usual spatial and trophic complexities often present in natural studies of feather isotope values. 3. Ranges and variances of isotope values for the feathers were larger than those from previously published studies that report feather isotopic variance, but they were bimodally distributed in all isotope dimensions. Isotope values for proximal dietary resources and local surface water show that some of the feathers we assumed to have been grown locally must have been grown before birds reached isotopic equilibrium with local diet or immediately prior to arrival at Great Salt Lake. 4. Our study provides novel insights about resource use strategies in eared grebes during migration. More generally, it demonstrates the utility of studying variance structures and questioning assumptions implicit in the interpretation of stable isotope data from wild animals.

Utah↗
USGS1995

History and use of remote sensing for conservation and management of federal lands in Alaska, USA

Remote sensing has been used to aid land use planning efforts for federal public lands in Alaska since the 1940s. Four federal land management agencies-the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, US. Bureau of Land Management, US. National Park Service, and U.S. Forest Service-have used aerial photography and satellite imagery to document the extent, type, and condition of Alaska's natural resources. Aerial photographs have been used to collect detailed information over small to medium-sized areas. This standard management tool is obtainable using equipment ranging from hand-held 35-mm cameras to precision metric mapping cameras. Satellite data, equally important, provide synoptic views of landscapes, are digitally manipulatable, and are easily merged with other digital databases. To date, over 109.2 million ha (72%) of Alaska's land cover have been mapped via remote sensing. This information has provided a base for conservation, management, and planning on federal public lands in Alaska.

Alaska↗
USGS2015

Determining climate change management priorities: A case study from Wisconsin

A burgeoning dialogue exists regarding how to allocate resources to maximize the likelihood of long-term biodiversity conservation within the context of climate change. To make effective decisions in natural resource management, an iterative, collaborative, and learning-based decision process may be more successful than a strictly consultative approach. One important, early step in a decision process is to identify priority species or systems. Although this promotes the conservation of select species or systems, it may inadvertently alter the future of non-target species and systems. We describe a process to screen terrestrial wildlife for potential sensitivity to climate change and then use the results to engage natural resource professionals in a process of identifying priorities for monitoring, research, and adaptation strategy implementation. We demonstrate this approach using a case study from Wisconsin. In Wisconsin, experts identified 23 out of 353 species with sufficient empirical research and management understanding to inform targeted action. Habitat management and management of hydrological conditions were the common strategies for targeted action. Although there may be an interest in adaptation strategy implementation for many species and systems, experts considered existing information inadequate to inform targeted action. According to experts, 40% of the vertebrate species in Wisconsin will require near-term intervention for climate adaptation. These results will inform state-wide conservation planning as well as regional efforts.

Wisconsin↗
USGS2022

Annotated bibliography of scientific research on pygmy rabbits published from 1990 to 2020

Integrating recent scientific knowledge into management decisions supports effective natural resource management and can lead to better resource outcomes. However, finding and accessing scientific knowledge can be time consuming and costly. To assist in this process, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is creating a series of annotated bibliographies on topics of management concern for western lands. Previously published reports introduced a methodology for preparing annotated bibliographies to facilitate the integration of recent, peer-reviewed science into resource management decisions. Therefore, relevant text from those efforts is reproduced here to frame the presentation. Sagebrush ecosystems throughout North America face management challenges including habitat loss and fragmentation. Brachylagus idahoensis (pygmy rabbits) are a sagebrush-obligate species that has experienced population declines and range contraction in recent decades. A disjunct population of pygmy rabbits in the Columbia Basin in Washington was listed as federally endangered in 2003. Due to their specialized habitat requirements and low dispersal ability, pygmy rabbits are a high priority for managers throughout their range. We compiled and summarized peer-reviewed journal articles, data products, and formal technical reports (such as U.S. Forest Service General Technical Reports and U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Reports) on pygmy rabbits published between January 1, 1990 and December 31, 2020. We first conducted a structured search of three reference databases and three government databases using the phrase “pygmy rabbit” or “ Brachylagus idahoensis .” We refined the initial list of products by removing (1) duplicates, (2) products not written in English, (3) publications that were not focused on North America, (4) publications that were not published as research, data products, or scientific review articles in peer-reviewed journals or as formal technical reports, and (5) products for which pygmy rabbits were not a research focus or for which the study did not present new data or findings about pygmy rabbits. We summarized each product using a consistent structure (background, objectives, methods, location, findings, and implications) and identified the management topics (for example, captive breeding, habitat characteristics, and population estimates) addressed by each product. We also noted which publications included new publicly available geospatial data. The review process for this annotated bibliography included an initial internal colleague review of each summary, requesting input on each summary from an author of the original publication, and a formal peer review. Our initial searches resulted in 2,285 total products, of which 105 met our criteria for inclusion. Sensitive/rare wildlife, behavior or demographics, site-scale habitat characteristics, habitat selection, and effects distances or spatial scale were the management topics most commonly addressed. The online version of this bibliography, Science for Resource Managers, will be searchable by topic, location, and year; it will include links to each original publication, where available. The studies compiled and summarized here may inform planning and management actions that seek to maintain and restore sagebrush landscapes and associated native species across the western United States.

Open-File Report↗
USGS2014

Effect of passive acoustic sampling methodology on detecting bats after declines from white nose syndrome

Concomitant with the emergence and spread of white-nose syndrome (WNS) and precipitous decline of many bat species in North America, natural resource managers need modified and/or new techniques for bat inventory and monitoring that provide robust occupancy estimates. We used Anabat acoustic detectors to determine the most efficient passive acoustic sampling design for optimizing detection probabilities of multiple bat species in a WNS-impacted environment in New York, USA. Our sampling protocol included: six acoustic stations deployed for the entire duration of monitoring as well as a 4 x 4 grid and five transects of 5-10 acoustic units that were deployed for 6-8 night sample durations surveyed during the summers of 2011-2012. We used Program PRESENCE to determine detection probability and site occupancy estimates. Overall, the grid produced the highest detection probabilities for most species because it contained the most detectors and intercepted the greatest spatial area. However, big brown bats ( Eptesicus fuscus ) and species not impacted by WNS were detected easily regardless of sampling array. Endangered Indiana ( Myotis sodalis ) and little brown ( Myotis lucifugus ) and tri-colored bats ( Perimyotis subflavus ) showed declines in detection probabilities over our study, potentially indicative of continued WNS-associated declines. Identification of species presence through efficient methodologies is vital for future conservation efforts as bat populations decline further due to WNS and other factors.

Journal of Ecology and the Natural Environment↗
USGS2018

Assessing the risk of diploid grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella in the certified triploid supply chain in Ohio

Non-native grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) have been stocked in the United States for vegetation control since the 1970s, and recent evidence suggests some natural reproduction in the Great Lakes basin. Despite all states and provinces bordering Lake Erie either banning grass carp or requiring imports of only sterile, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS)-certified triploids, the majority of grass carp captured and analyzed from Lake Erie are diploid, or reproductively viable. Potential sources of diploid grass carp include illegal importation, compromises in the USFWS-certified triploid shipments, migration from legal diploid states, or natural reproduction resulting from diploid stockings prior to the 1988 Ohio law requiring only certified triploids. The goal of this study was to explore the risk that diploid grass carp occur in the USFWS-certified triploid supply chain destined for Ohio. During 2015 and 2016, undercover Ohio Department of Natural Resources-Division of Wildlife law enforcement purchased 1200 grass carp from 16 distributors, and overnighted 80 dissected grass carp head and eyeball sample shipments (n = 15 fish per shipment) for ploidy analysis by flow cytometry. Standardized methods for both field and laboratory processing were established. No diploid grass carp were detected in these collections, indicating fidelity of the USFWS-certified triploid grass carp supply chain in Ohio. Thus, these shipments are not a likely source of diploid grass carp in Lake Erie. This study is the first large-scale evaluation of the potential for ecological risk from diploid grass carp occurrence in USFSW-certified shipments of triploids for national distribution.

Ohio↗
USGS2000

Kansas coal distribution, resources, and potential for coalbed methane

100 ft (>30 m)] determined from 32 different coal beds. Strippable coal resources at a depth < 100 ft (<30 m) total 2.8 billion tons (2.6 billion MT), and this total is determined from 17 coals. Coal beds present in the Cherokee Group (Middle Pennsylvanian) represent most of these coal resource totals. Deep coal beds with the largest resource totals include the Bevier, Mineral, \"Aw\" (unnamed coal bed), Riverton, and Weir-Pittsburg coals, all within the Cherokee Group. Based on chemical analyses, coals in the southeastern part of the state are generally high volatile A bituminous, whereas coals in the east-central and northeastern part of the state are high-volatile B bituminous coals. The primary concern of coal beds in Kansas for deep mining or development of coalbed methane is the thin nature [<2 ft (0.6 m)] of most coal beds. Present production of coalbed methane is centered mainly in the southern Wilson/northern Montgomery County area of southeastern Kansas where methane is produced from the Mulky, Weir-Pittsburg, and Riverton coals."}" data-sheets-userformat="{"2":8403202,"4":[null,2,16777215],"11":4,"14":[null,2,0],"15":"Inconsolata, monospace, arial, sans, sans-serif","16":11,"26":400}" data-sheets-formula="=VLOOKUP(R[0]C[-5],Fixed!R2C[-6]:C[-4],3,false)">Kansas has large amounts of bituminous coal both at the surface and in the subsurface of eastern Kansas. Preliminary studies indicate at least 53 billion tons (48 billion MT) of deep coal [>100 ft (>30 m)] determined from 32 different coal beds. Strippable coal resources at a depth < 100 ft (<30 m) total 2.8 billion tons (2.6 billion MT), and this total is determined from 17 coals. Coal beds present in the Cherokee Group (Middle Pennsylvanian) represent most of these coal resource totals. Deep coal beds with the largest resource totals include the Bevier, Mineral, "Aw" (unnamed coal bed), Riverton, and Weir-Pittsburg coals, all within the Cherokee Group. Based on chemical analyses, coals in the southeastern part of the state are generally high volatile A bituminous, whereas coals in the east-central and northeastern part of the state are high-volatile B bituminous coals. The primary concern of coal beds in Kansas for deep mining or development of coalbed methane is the thin nature [<2 ft (0.6 m)] of most coal beds. Present production of coalbed methane is centered mainly in the southern Wilson/northern Montgomery County area of southeastern Kansas where methane is produced from the Mulky, Weir-Pittsburg, and Riverton coals.

Kansas↗