Not by bringing back coal jobs, as Trump tried to do (unsuccessfully).
Even without climate change, coal would have disappeared from the energy mix, a victim of competition from cheap natural gas (and, now, cheap solar power).
The decline of coal has been an economic disaster in West Virginia and parts of other states that were coal-dependent for their economies. Germany’s coal regions have fared much better, for two reasons: Much bigger government support for rebuilding local coal-region economies, and using those funds to build more-diversified economies less dependent on a single industry.
Could that be a model for rescuing U.S. coal communities? It won’t win any music awards, but it might work. Read story here.
Photo: This TVA coal plant in Kentucky was shut down in 2020. Below: Read the singer’s bio here.