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Coal
Resource Assessment of the Gulf Coast Province
WARWICK, P. D., S. S. CROWLEY, and J. R. SANFILIPO
The quantity and quality of the Gulf Coast Province coal resources are being
assessed as part of a national coal resource assessment that will be completed
by 1999. Planned results of the project are high-quality, digital,
geo-referenced databases and geologic interpretations that characterize the coal
that is expected to be mined in the Gulf region during the next several decades.
Particular interest will be given to characterization of coal geochemistry,
including, when possible, the potentially Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs)
identified by the United States 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments.
The Gulf Coast Province produces about 57 million short tons of coal
annually. Most of the coal in the province is lignite, produced from the Wilcox
Group (Paleocene-Eocene) in Texas, and is used as fuel for mine-mouth electric
power generating plants. A preliminary stratigraphic and geochemical database
for the upper Cretaceous Olmos Formation, the Wilcox Group, and the Eocene
Claiborne and Jackson Groups has been prepared for the areas in the Gulf that
are currently producing or have potential for producing coal in the near future.
Preliminary stratigraphic cross sections and coal isopach and isochem maps
(scale 1:100,000) for the coal-producing areas, and a digital Gulf Coast
Province coal map (scale 1:2,000,000) show the details of the coal geology and
local coal
production of the province. Final digital products will be available
via the internet or CD Rom formats. Printed copies of reports also will be
available.