An employee with Runyan Construction takes a temperature reading of a Gallup-area coal mine fire that’s been burning since for at least 13 years. State officials announced Monday that two mine fires burning since at least 2011 were extinguished. (Photo courtesy of EMNRD)
Two fires burning in abandoned coal mines since at least 2011 – and possibly much longer – were finally extinguished near Gallup recently, thanks to a dedicated effort by a New Mexico state team and federal funding, officials announced Monday.
The two underground coal fires were emitting toxic gas near the site of planned infrastructure projects, including a major water pipeline. The mines were first established in the late 1800s and operated until the early 1900s, according to a news release from the state Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department.
In 1891, a fire broke out near one of the mines, called “Navajo No. 1,” and the mine was sealed in 1905 as a result, according to the news release. But it’s unclear from state records whether sealing the mine actually extinguished the fire, spokesperson Sidney Hill said.
More than 100 years later, staff from the state’s Abandoned Mine Land Program encountered fires at that mine and at a separate mine, known as “Enterprise-Brown.” That was in 2011.
A problem of ‘infinite scope and cost’
After the fires were discovered, team members monitored the mines for several years before devising a plan to extinguish them, thanks, in part, to funding from the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
The law sets aside about $12 billion for abandoned mine remediation across the country, including roughly $36 million to New Mexico over the next 15 years. Extinguishing these fires cost about $385,000, according to the news release.
The “Enterprise-Brown” fire was burning toward the Navajo Gallup Water Supply Line, a huge project carrying water through 300 miles of pipeline from the San Juan River to the eastern edge of the Navajo Nation, part of the Jicarilla Apache Nation and the city of Gallup.
The “Navajo No. 1” fire was burning near a new recreation area planned for campers and hikers, according to the news release.
Temperatures from both fires reached 500 degrees Fahrenheit in some places, Hill said. The team used specialized drilling equipment and seismic surveys to determine the fires’ spread.
Then they used heavy equipment to dig out coal seams where the fire was burning, which was then filled. After both seams were filled with a “benign material” and temperatures fell to 90 degrees, the sites of both mines were covered with native seeds and wood mulch, Hill said.
The mine fires posed risks not only to the infrastructure project but also could have sparked a wildfire, EMNRD Secretary Melanie Kenderdine said in the news release.
Hill did not respond to a request for comment Monday afternoon from Source New Mexico about whether there were any additional mine fires burning in New Mexico, and where they are.
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