One of the ways to resolve the “green energy-economic development” dilemma, in which the coal industry is situated, is by the improvement of technologies and the integrated use of extracted resources, including methane gas as a clean energy source. Using the example of the Kirova mine, located in Kuznetsk coal basin—one of the ecologically unfavorable coal mining regions of Russia—this article discusses an integrated technology for the extraction of coalbed methane (ECBM), which makes it possible to reduce greenhouse gas (methane) emissions and improve the safety and intensity of coal mining. The Kirova mine, with its 3 Mt production in 2019, is one of the coal mining leaders in Russia. The available mining equipment has the potential to significantly increase the output; however, gas is a limiting factor to this. The customary approaches to coal seam degassing have already been petered out. The miners and mine science are facing a challenge to validate and test an alternative technology to ensure effective in-seam gas drainage prior to vigorous mining. This article gives an account of the improvement track record of the in-seam gas drainage technology used to pre-treat coal seams for intensive and safe extraction. This technology suggests, at the first stage, hydraulic loosening of the target coal seam through wells drilled from the surface (SSHL), then hydraulic fracturing (HF) of the coal seam through the boreholes drilled from underground development headings, followed by methane extraction from the high-permeability coal-gas reservoir created through standard in-seam gas drainage underground wells. Results are presented in this paper of field testing of the improved SSHL technique. Findings are presented on the effective parameters of the HF technology. Methodological recommendations are offered for selecting viable in-seam gas drainage technology.

Despite advances in rockburst studies, suddenness of major geodynamic events is reported in a number of cases. Phenomenological tectonophysical model is suggested to explain some geodynamics phenomena. Prof. Petukhov I.M. suggested a concept: the Earth crust's critical stress condition is developed due to horizontal compressive forces and entrains rock strata from the sub-surface to a certain depth. The conditions that induced earthquake in 2013 at Bachat coal field in south west Kuzbass are considered in terms of critical stress developed in the top layer of the Earth crust. Estimates show that the size of the critical stress zone, produced presumably by interaction of huge (over 100 km) crustal blocks is at least 10km. Whereas critical stress zone is located in the top part of Earth's crust, mining operations in the pit including blast operations was making a direct impact on this area. Shallow occurrence of critical stress area and its size can provide insight into why mining works brought about induced earthquake with hypocenter at the depth of several kilometers. The conclusion has been made that regional areas of critical stress within rock massif developed as a result of crustal blocks interaction create hazard medium for mining.

The article considers the hypothesis according to which one of the influences on spontaneous combustion of a coal waste dump is its geodynamic setting. Statistical data show that coal waste dumps located in geodynamically hazardous zones, i.e. at the interfaces of the Earth’s crust blocks, suffer from self-ignition more often than dumps set beyond the limits of such zones. The computer modeling of situation at a coal waste dump in the East Donbass reveals a cause-and-effect chain capable to explain this phenomenon. Air permeates into the dump from closely spaced underground mines through the geodynamically hazardous zones as the most permeable areas in rock mass. At fire-hazardous air flow velocity and temperature increment in the dump, its spontaneous combustion takes place. The gas mass transfer process intensifies and promotes further growth of the fire source. The modeling results can be used in coal waste dump planning and monitoring, as well as in combating spontaneous combustions.

Rock burst is one of the typical dynamic disasters in coal mining. In order to reveal the mechanism of rock burst from the energy view point, the relationships between the maximum, minimum, and intermediate principal stresses and the concentration coefficients of the gravity stress k1, k2, and k3 are determined through the geostress measurement combined with engineering practice of coal mining. The coal and rock system model based on the tectonic stress is established. The relationship between energy and scale radius of the coal and rock system is determined to reveal the law of energy accumulation, release, and transfer in the coal and rock system. In view of the characteristics of the porous medium in the coal seam, the measures of water injection are put forward to relieve pressure in the coal seam, and the law of water seepage in the process of water injection in the coal seam is studied based on the seepage mechanics. The result shows that the trend of released energy of damaged coal has good consistency with the variation of permeability, and water injection can reduce the stress concentration and energy concentration of the rock burst system. The engineering practice of the rock burst prevention was taken in Yuejin Coal Mine. The energy characteristics of the coal and rock system in the working face are analyzed, and the measures of water injection and the corresponding parameters are determined.

Spontaneous combustion of coal dumps and their impact on the environment of mining regions remain important environmental problem, in spite of the measures that are being taken. The paper presents the hypothesis, which states that the location of coal dumps at the boundaries of geodynamically active crust blocks promotes the appearance of conditions for their combustion. At present geodynamically active crust faults that affect the operating conditions of engineering facilities are observed not only in the areas of tectonic activity, but also on platforms. According to the concept of geodynamical zoning, geodynamically dangerous zones for engineering structures can be not only large, well-developed crust faults, but also just formed fractures that appear as boundaries of geodynamically impacting and hierarchically ordered crust blocks. The purpose of the study is to estimate the linkage of burning dumps to boundaries of geodynamically active crust blocks (geodynamically dangerous zones) for subsequent development of recommendations for reducing environmental hazard. The analysis of 27 coal dumps location was made for one of the Eastern Donbass regions (Russia). Nine of sixteen burning dumps are located in geodynamically dangerous zones, which, taking into account relatively small area occupied by all geodynamically dangerous zones, results that there is a concentration (pcs/km²) of burning dumps, which is 14 times higher than the baseline value. While the probability of accidental obtaining of such a result is extremely low, this can be considered as the evidence of the linkage of burning dumps to geodynamically dangerous zones. Taking into account the stressed state of the rock massif in this region, all geodynamically dangerous zones can be divided into compression and tension zones. The statistic is limited, but nevertheless in tension zones the concentration of burning dumps is 2 times higher than in compression zones. Available results of thermal monitoring of burning dumps in this region also show that linearly extended firing sources oriented along geodynamically dangerous zones are observed. The obtained results show that geodynamical conditions of mining region, in which coal dumps are located, is important factor that impacts the creation of conditions for their spontaneous combustion and subsequent impact on the environment. Then this factor should be controlled by choosing the place for dumps location. It is proposed to carry out these works for the entire mining region of the Eastern Donbass, where there are more than 200 coal dumps.

Nowadays, anthropogenic seismicity during mining operations is actual in many countries around the world. Strong rockbursts and anthropogenic earthquakes cause not only large material damage but also social and environmental impact. At that, the major geodynamic events and sudden seismic activity remain statistically rare events that makes it difficult to study these phenomena and to find out regularities. Uniqueness of their occurrence conditions and, often, inaccessibility of information contribute to such state of affairs. At that, rockbursts were known since the 19th century and information on conditions of their occurrence is available in published papers and special catalogues. It seems that use in summarizing and analysis of the data on strong rockbursts occurred in the past at the deposits worldwide could contribute to a better understanding of a nature and mechanisms of anthropogenic earthquakes which take place today. In this connection, a problem on the rockbursts data re-using for search of the anthropogenic seismicity regularities has been arisen. In paper, structure and content of the published in the Soviet Union and Russia special catalogs and international bibliography indexes on rockbursts are analyzed. The data available in the catalogs and publications can be used for studying and confirming of some studying regularities related to the reactivation of tectonic faults, presence of tectonically strained zones, occurrence of geodynamic hazard far from the place of mining works. It is concluded that repeated analysis of the data on the rockbursts occurrence at the deposits worldwide on the basis of up-to-date geomechanical concepts will allow extending the statistical basis for search and identification of the anthropogenic seismicity regularities.