Memo to Coal States: Adapt or Die Whether or not Congress passes
climate legislation setting a cap on carbon dioxide, the future
of coal in the United States looks bleak. Coal production in
Central Appalachia is expected to decline by nearly 50 percent
in the next decade, according to a new report from environmental
consulting firm Downstream Strategies. Coal-producing counties
in southern West Virginia, eastern Kentucky, southwest Virginia,
and eastern Tennessee can expect a sharp decline in production,
which has already fallen substantially over the last 12 years.
Production peaked in 1997 at 290 million tons and fell 20
percent by 2008, due largely to increased competition from other
regions and types of fuel and the depletion of the most
accessible coal deposits. Though there are still substantial
coal reserves, the study predicts a 46 percent decline in
production by 2020 and a 58 percent decline by 2035. And that's
not even counting the effect of strict emissions regulations
that would likely reduce fut