STRIPPABLE COAL RESOURCES OF COLORADO. LOCATION, TONNAGE, AND CHARACTERISTICS OF COAL AND OVERBURDEN

Coal resource data from public and private sources, in conjunction with previously published data, were used by the Bureau of Mines to determine the location and extent of strippable coal resources in Colorado. Total strippable resources of approximately 18 billion tons were estimated in 12 separate coal regions, fields, or deposits. Coal recoverable by contour mining techniques was not included. Criteria used in defining strippable resources were a minimum coalbed thickness of 2 feet and a maximum overburden thickness of 150 feet, except where the coalbeds are of exceptional thickness. All Colorado coal is contained in either Cretaceous or Tertiary rocks, specifically the Dakota Sandstone and the Mesaverde Group or its equivalent of Cretaceous age; and the Dawson Arkose, Fort Union, and Wasatch Formations and equivalents of Tertiary age. The strippable coal ranges in rank from bituminous in the Yampa region to ligniferous in the Denver basin. All coal is low in sulfur content.

• Corporate Authors:

  Bureau of Mines

  Intermountain Field Operation Center
  Denver, CO  United States 
• Authors:
  • Speltz, C N
• Publication Date: 1976-8

Media Info

• Pagination: 78 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Coal; Coal industry; Coal resources; Energy resources; Fossil fuels; Freight traffic; Geology; Location; Stratigraphy; Strip mining
• Uncontrolled Terms: Building sites; Energy sources
• Geographic Terms: Colorado
• Old TRIS Terms: Fossil fuel deposits
• Subject Areas: Energy; Freight Transportation; Geotechnology; Railroads;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00145870
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: National Technical Information Service
• Report/Paper Numbers: BuMines-IC-8713
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jan 16 2003 12:00AM