Methane emissions from active and abandoned mines account for around 8% of total U.S. methane emissions annually. While venting methane is necessary for mine safety and is also a byproduct of mine abandonment, releasing any methane into the atmosphere has environmental and opportunity costs, as methane is a valuable resource that can be used for energy production, like RMG.

With less than 2% of active mines in the U.S. working to capture and use waste methane, there is a major opportunity to expand capture practices. Capturing mine methane will help reduce the methane emitted to atmosphere from active underground mines, which, according to the EPA, amounted to 33 million tons CO2e100 [CO2e100] of methane to atmosphere, or 61,951,520 MMBTU of methane per year—and that's only data from active underground mines that are required to report emissions.

Once converted into RMG, captured mine methane transforms an otherwise wasted byproduct into a reliable, domestic source of energy. RMG strengthens America's all-of-the-above energy strategy at a time when demand is rapidly increasing. By turning waste into power, RMG helps ensure that America's energy future is fueled by its own abundant resources.