[Paladin2]

Thanks for the links.

I found this even more interesting that the calculation of the CO2 statistic:

"Much of the landscape of the American West— its mesas and escarpments—is the result of vast, ancient coal fires. Those conflagrations formed “clinker”—a hard mass of fused stony matter. Surfaces formed in this way resist erosion far better than adjacent unfired ones, leaving clinker outcrops."

[justlurking]

"Much of the landscape of the American West— its mesas and escarpments—is the result of vast, ancient coal fires. Those conflagrations formed “clinker”—a hard mass of fused stony matter. Surfaces formed in this way resist erosion far better than adjacent unfired ones, leaving clinker outcrops."

Yes, I found some interesting surprises, like the oldest known coal fire in Australia:

Burning Mountain

It's estimated to have been burning for 6000 years, and was thought to be volcanic in origin until the early 1800's.

It was mentioned in the Smithsonian article, so I'm sure you saw it. I had never heard of it until now.