3. 1997 Demonstrated Reserve Base
and Estimated Recoverable Reserves

Demonstrated Reserve Base (Continued)

Accessible Resources

Although the 508 billion short tons of coal in the DRB is 477 times the Nation's coal production in 1996, almost half of the DRB is not expected to be recovered. First, more than 17 percent of the DRB is estimated as presently inaccessible for mining. Then, of the accessible portion of the DRB, EIA estimates that only 66 percent can actually be recovered by mining, with the other 34 percent likely to be lost in the mining process, based on recent mining experience. The result is that only a net 54 percent of the DRB is believed to be recoverable.

The EIA no longer publishes the detailed accessible reserve base table, that is, the tonnages of the DRB that are estimated as accessible for future mining. The accessibility factors are summarized in Table 13 in the net accessibility factors compiled or estimated for each coal supply region. Note that the accessibility factors reported in Table 13 are the converse of the "inaccessible resource factors" listed in earlier versions of this report.
 

Table 8. Demonstrated Reserve Base of Coal by State and Potential Method of Mining, 1995, 1997 (Million Short Tons)
Coal Producing State and Region	Underground		Surface		Total
	1997	1995	1997	1995	1997	1995
Alabama	1,290.2	1,361.9	3,256.3	3,273.1	4,546.6	4,635.0
Alaska	5,423.0	5,423.0	703.0	706.9	6,125.9	6,129.9
Arizona	101.6	101.6	59.3	87.3	160.8	188.8
Arkansas	272.5	272.5	144.4	144.5	416.9	417.0
Colorado	11,978.5	12,049.1	4,777.4	4,794.7	16,755.9	16,843.8
Georgia	1.9	1.9	1.7	1.7	3.6	3.6
Idaho	4.4	4.4	0.0	0.0	4.4	4.4
Illinois	88,460.5	73,781.3	16,608.4	16,174.7	105,068.9	89,956.0
Indiana	8,859.8	8,872.8	1,056.7	1,118.1	9,916.5	9,991.0
Iowa	1,732.5	1,732.5	457.0	457.0	2,189.5	2,189.5
Kansas	0.0	0.0	975.0	975.6	975.0	975.6
Kentucky Total	18,507.8	18,884.8	13,532.8	13,679.8	32,040.6	32,564.7
Kentucky, Eastern	2,246.9	2,525.0	9,839.3	9,959.9	12,086.2	12,484.8
Kentucky, Western	16,260.9	16,359.9	3,693.5	3,720.0	19,954.4	20,079.8
Louisiana	0.0	0.0	462.7	471.3	462.7	471.3
Maryland	636.8	649.2	80.2	82.2	717.0	731.4
Michigan	123.1	123.1	4.6	4.6	127.7	127.7
Missouri	1,479.1	1,479.1	4,514.9	4,516.5	5,994.1	5,995.7
Montana	70,958.4	70,958.7	48,718.2	48,814.6	119,676.5	119,773.3
New Mexico	6,204.1	6,205.4	6,278.6	6,341.4	12,482.7	12,546.8
North Carolina	10.7	10.7	0.0	0.0	10.7	10.7
North Dakota	0.0	0.0	9,395.0	9,470.0	9,395.0	9,470.0
Ohio	17,788.7	17,846.7	5,875.2	5,907.3	23,663.9	23,754.0
Oklahoma	1,237.0	1,237.4	338.0	342.2	1,575.0	1,579.6
Oregon	14.5	14.5	2.9	2.9	17.5	17.5
Pennsylvania Total	24,231.7	24,408.2	4,414.4	4,459.6	28,646.1	28,867.8
Anthracite	3,849.5	3,850.4	3,370.0	3,374.9	7,219.5	7,225.2
Bituminous	20,382.2	20,557.9	1,044.4	1,084.7	21,426.6	21,642.6
South Dakota	0.0	0.0	366.1	366.1	366.1	366.1
Tennessee	531.5	539.0	284.3	288.2	815.7	827.1
Texas	0.0	0.0	12,931.0	13,064.9	12,931.0	13,064.9
Utah	5,582.5	5,687.8	267.9	267.9	5,850.4	5,955.7
Virginia	1,528.2	1,630.0	673.8	697.3	2,202.0	2,327.3
Washington	1,332.3	1,332.3	57.4	68.7	1,389.7	1,400.9
West Virginia	30,968.3	31,419.5	4,428.8	4,563.6	35,397.1	35,983.1
Wyoming	42,515.8	42,525.1	25,298.7	25,970.7	67,814.5	68,495.8
Appalachian Total	79,234.7	80,392.0	28,854.0	29,232.8	108,088.8	109,624.8
Interior Total	118,425.4	103,858.6	41,186.0	40,989.4	159,611.4	144,848.0
Western Total	144,115.0	144,301.8	95,924.5	96,891.1	240,039.5	241,193.0
East of the Mississippi	192,939.0	179,529.1	50,217.1	50,250.2	243,156.1	229,779.3
West of the Mississippi	148,836.1	149,023.3	115,747.4	116,863.1	264,583.5	265,886.4
U.S. Total	341,775.1	328,552.4	165,964.5	167,113.3	507,739.6	495,665.7
1For a definition of coal-producing regions, see Table 13.    Note: Totals based on available data. Totals may not equal sum of components because of independent rounding. Data are reported as of the first day of the year.    Sources: EIA Coal Reserves Data Base program, State geological and mineral resource surveys, and other geological reports.

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