How Coal Country Can Adapt to the Energy Transition

The document examines the decline of the U.S. coal industry, driven by cheaper natural gas and renewables, and the resulting workforce crisis. It argues that a successful transition requires more than just shifting to another single industry; it necessitates broad economic diversification. The brief outlines potential employment opportunities in clean energy, energy efficiency, environmental remediation (such as mine reclamation and forest restoration), broadband deployment, and entrepreneurship. It also reviews proposed federal frameworks, such as the National Economic Transition Office, and highlights regional initiatives in Appalachia and the West that support displaced workers through retraining and community-led development.

• The decline of the U.S. coal industry is primarily driven by the availability of cheaper alternative energy sources and rising extraction costs, rather than environmental regulations. Natural gas has undercut coal prices since the early 2010s, and the depletion of productive reserves in Central Appalachia has increased production costs.
• The coal workforce has faced significant shocks, with mining employment in the U.S. dropping by 39 percent between 2009 and 2016. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this crisis, with over 6,000 coal mining jobs lost in March and April 2020 alone.
• Renewable energy adoption in coal-dependent regions is hindered by limited solar and wind resources and high 'market entry' barriers caused by the entrenchment of existing coal-based generation.
• Environmental remediation of coal sites offers a viable employment path for displaced workers. For example, cleanup at the Colstrip power plant in Montana is estimated to create 66.4 direct jobs per year over 40 years, while Duke Energy's coal ash cleanup in North Carolina created over 3,700 jobs between 2013 and 2019.
• Broadband deployment and fiber optic installation provide critical economic opportunities for rural coal communities. In Colorado, Lightworks has retrained over 80 former coal workers, and Kentucky's KentuckyWired project has seen 80 percent of construction work-hours performed by residents as of March 2019.
• Proposed federal strategies for a just transition include the creation of a National Economic Transition Office, the reestablishment of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), and the creation of a Climate Resilience Service Corps (CRSC).

APA

Neal, A. (2020). How Coal Country Can Adapt to the Energy Transition. Environmental and Energy Study Institute. https://www.eesi.org/papers/view/issue-brief-how-coal-country-can-adapt-to-the-energy-transition

Chicago

Neal, Abby. How Coal Country Can Adapt to the Energy Transition. Environmental and Energy Study Institute, 2020. https://www.eesi.org/papers/view/issue-brief-how-coal-country-can-adapt-to-the-energy-transition.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Neal |first1=Abby |title=How Coal Country Can Adapt to the Energy Transition |publisher=Environmental and Energy Study Institute |date=10 November 2020 |url=https://www.eesi.org/papers/view/issue-brief-how-coal-country-can-adapt-to-the-energy-transition |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{neal2020how, author = {Neal, Abby}, title = {{How Coal Country Can Adapt to the Energy Transition}}, institution = {Environmental and Energy Study Institute}, year = {2020}, month = nov, url = {https://www.eesi.org/papers/view/issue-brief-how-coal-country-can-adapt-to-the-energy-transition}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }