Jixi city in Heilongjiang province has stepped up methane control and management at its coal mines to shore up safety across the sector.

The city government said at a meeting on September 8 that methane remains the "number one killer" in coal mine safety and that gas accidents are a prominent weak link holding back high-quality development of the industry.

Officials called for a full-scale effort to plug governance loopholes and tighten prevention measures, urging authorities at all levels to treat methane control as the top priority in coal mine production safety.

The meeting stressed prevention of major gas risks, with a focus on outburst-prone and high-gas mines. Key procedures — including coal uncovering through crosscuts, fault crossing, initial mining pressure, working face withdrawal, gas drainage and blasting — must be strictly controlled.

The city required dynamic updates to "one mine, one policy; one face, one policy" methane treatment plans, and rigid implementation of rules requiring drainage before construction, tunneling and mining, as well as compliance with two "four-in-one" comprehensive outburst prevention measures.

A city-wide campaign will screen for hidden gas hazards, covering management systems, ventilation facilities, drainage quality and efficiency, special zones, monitoring equipment and power supply systems.

The meeting also called for routine management and early warning procedures, standardized gas inspection workflows and tougher punishment for on-site violations, with every technical and management requirement to be implemented down to work teams, posts and underground sites.

Jixi urged a coordinated approach across counties and districts, with coal management departments taking regulatory responsibility and mining companies bearing primary responsibility for production safety. The city said it would enforce regulations including the Coal Mine Safety Production Regulations and the Coal Mine Safety Rules, strengthen accountability and build a talent pool to create a traceable, full-chain methane control framework.

Jixi is the largest of four coal cities in Heilongjiang and a major coal production base in China. It holds about 6.6 Bt of recoverable coal reserves, roughly 33% of the province's total. Its coal types are diverse, mainly coking coal, 1/3 coking coal, lignite and gas coal. Under its planning, coal production capacity is targeted to reach more than 35 Mtpa by the end of the 14th "Five-Year Plan" period.