Powerful Clouds of Methane Spotted in Alabama Coal Country

Powerful clouds of the greenhouse gas methane have been observed by satellite near a coal-mining basin in Alabama, highlighting an often overlooked climate impact from the dirtiest fossil fuel.

Since mid-February at least three plumes were observed by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-5P satellite that originated near the Black Warrior Basin, according to an analysis of the data from Kayrros SAS. The plumes could have been generated by multiple sources, the geoanalytics firm said.

The estimated locations for each of the releases were within 12.4 miles (20 kilometers) of five mines or mine clusters owned or operated by Warrior Met Coal Inc., RJR Mining Co. and Southland ...