Closure of coal-fired power plants has taken away the economic 'lifeblood' of small towns across the nation

The J.M. Stuart Station, seen from the Kentucky shore of the Ohio River, is the largest coal-fired power plant to have been closed in the United States. It was one of 19 that closed last year. (Photo by Luke Sharrett, The Washington Post)

Much has been written about the loss of coal jobs because natural gas had become the leading fuel to generate electricity, but some of the largest single-site job losses have come at coal-fired power plants that have been closed, and they are often in small towns along rivers that provide cooling water for such plants. Brady Dennis and Steven Mufson told that story in The Washington Post., with a focus on the J.M. Stuart and Killen plants in Adams County, Ohio, upstream from Cincinnati.

"The slow retreat of coal plants has brought what many scientists, environmental advocates and policymakers say is much-needed change. Burning coal causes air pollution that can damage the health of nearby residents. It releases large amounts of carbon dioxide, which fuels climate change. And the leftover waste lingers in landfills and storage pits that can threaten water supplies," they write. "But in places like Adams County, with a population of about 28,000 and already one of the poorest corners of Ohio, the death of a coal plant can leave an unmistakable void. When the Stuart and Killen stations closed last year, with them went the area’s highest-paying jobs, its largest employers, its biggest taxpayers and, in many ways, its lifeblood." The plants employed 700.

“It’s devastating, really, to be honest,” Adams County Sheriff Kimmy Rogers told the Post. “The only thing we had going for us, really, were the power plants.” Rogers "has fewer deputies than when he started in 2010 and, during some shifts, has only two to cover 583 square miles," the Post reports.

Adams County
(Wikipedia map)

In addition to the story of Adams County, the reporters explain that coal is not just the victim of cheap natural gas, but increasingly cheap renewable energy, environmental measures by the Obama administration, increased competition in regional electric grids, state-by-state goals for increased use of renewables, and "pressure from climate-conscious companies such as Google and Amazon," who want 100 percent renewable power for data facilities.