Kentucky county exemplifies decline of coal industry in Central Appalachia

The grim prospects for the coal industry in Central Appalachia are illustrated by the Kentucky county that was the state's most dependent on coal -- until last year, when the county lost 63 percent of its coal jobs and 45 percent of its coal production. Bill Estep and John Cheves of the Lexington Herald Leader looked at Knott County for the second major installment of their series, "50 Years of Night," marking the 50th anniversary of the publication of Harry Caudill's book on the region, Night Comes to the Cumberlands.

"There were only 330 people employed at coal mines by the end of the year, down from more than 1,300 a decade before, according to the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet," the reporters write. The county clerk says people blame President Obama's "War on Coal," but "The chief force behind the coal industry's precipitous slide in Eastern Kentucky was very cheap natural gas, which enticed utilities to switch from coal to gas, analysts said. . . . Analysts project that coal production in Eastern Kentucky and throughout Central Appalachia will continue a steep slide in the next few years regardless of the mix of environmental rules, said Sean O'Leary, an analyst with the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy." (Read more)

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2013/06/16/2679110/in-eastern-kentucky-coal-mines.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2013/06/16/2679110/in-eastern-kentucky-coal-mines.html#storylink=cpy