• Rohit Kumar Bhoxa
• Er. Himmi Gupta

Carbon footprint is an indicator to assess the greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted from an activity or process. Both surface and underground mines, although contribute about 6% of global emission, has the potential to be significant contributors to overall GHG emission. In case of an underground mine, the operations associated the production of coal are the main causes of GHG emissions, primarily emission of methane. Inherent within the coal's structure, methane desorbs from the coal's internal surfaces during the mining process, and then moves to the atmosphere through a mine's ventilation system. The unit operations of opencast mining demands high energy and it directly and indirectly contribute GHG emission. Emissions from stock piles of coal/waste also contribute to carbon emission. In this paper different mining activities and their potential to contribute to GHG emission are discussed. Preliminary steps to assess carbon footprint of each of these mining activities are suggested. This paper also highlights the importance of calculating carbon footprint of mines in order to determine its contribution to the present climate change and also encourage development of cleaner technologies to mitigate such emissions. It also illuminates the various problems encountered while carrying out the estimations and suggests measures to improve the estimation and control of these emissions such as use of solar energy in lieu of conventional fuel based energy.

Carbon Footprint, coal mines, emission factor, carbon dioxide, GHG

"Analysis of Carbon Footprint in Coal Mines of Bastacolla area, Jharkahnd", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.9, Issue 6, page no.d459-d463, June-2022, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2206359.pdf

"Analysis of Carbon Footprint in Coal Mines of Bastacolla area, Jharkahnd", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.9, Issue 6, page no. ppd459-d463, June-2022, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2206359.pdf