This is the first Technical Progress report for the subject agreement. During the first six months of the project, progress was made in arranging participation by other CONSOL departments, identifying a prospective site, developing an environmental assessment report, and securing land and coal rights. In addition, correspondences were drafted in response to NETL inquiries. These aspects of the project are discussed in detail in this report.

The availability of clean, affordable energy is essential for the prosperity and security of the United States and the world in the 21st century. Carbon dioxide (CO{sub 2}) emissions to the atmosphere are an inherent part of energy-related activities, such as electricity generation, transportation, and building systems. These energy-related activities are responsible for roughly 85% of the U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and 95% of these emissions are dominated by CO{sub 2}. Over the last few decades, an increased concentration of CO{sub 2} in the earth's atmosphere has been observed. Many scientists believe greenhouse gases, particularly CO{sub 2}, trap heat in the earth's atmosphere. Carbon sequestration technology offers an approach to redirect CO{sub 2} emissions into sinks (e.g., geologic formations, oceans, soils, and vegetation) and potentially stabilize future atmospheric CO{sub 2} levels. Coal seams are attractive CO{sub 2} sequestration sinks, due to their abundance and proximity to electricity-generation facilities. The recovery of marketable coal bed methane (CBM) provides a value-added stream, reducing the cost to sequester CO{sub 2} gas. Much research is needed to evaluate this technology in terms of CO{sub 2} storage capacity, sequestration stability, commercial feasibility and overall economics. CONSOL Energy, with support from the U.S. DOE, is conducting …