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Likely closure of the coal-fired Navajo Generating Station is laying bare the dangers of relying too heavily on a one-note economy. “There's no comparison” to such jobs, one worker said.

Cloud Peak Energy’s long-shot search for a party to buy its struggling Powder River Basin mines is “a fracture in Wyoming coal’s newfound stability after years of layoffs and bankruptcies.”

Research by an atmospheric scientist at Rice University finds that the “social cost” of coal-fired power plants is a strong argument in itself for modernization of electricity production: “We found that the damage to public health and the climate this source of electricity causes far exceeds the money power generators earn from the electricity they sell.”

Newly elected governors in four states will take office after having endorsed policy platforms for renewable energy expansion and cleaner electricity production. They are Steve Sisolak of Nevada, Gavin Newsom of California, Tim Walz of Minnesota and Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, who said, “We will be known as the clean energy state of America."

A poll by Consumer Reports finds that most Americans would prefer to get their electricity from renewable sources. Of note in the survey results: Residents of four states with a higher-than-average use of coal—Illinois, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia—are in line with the majority.

The Spanish government, coal companies, and unions have reached a deal that includes $285 million for early retirement funds for miners over 48, and job retraining and support for younger miners. “Losing mines does not have to mean a loss of work. Done thoughtfully, it could present an opportunity for new economic growth.”

The West Virginia Supreme Court has ruled against a campaign by coal interests to block construction of a fleet of natural-gas-fired power plants in the state. “It is apparent that the project will substantially and positively impact the state and local economies,” the court said in favor of the proposed Brook County power plant.

“It no longer makes sense to rely on past assumptions,” the president of Northern Indiana Public Service Company said in announcing this week that the 468,000-customer utility will abandon coal-fired power generation for renewables. NIPSCO says the move will save ratepayers $4 billion and is in the region’s best interest.

The economy of West Virginia, long dependent on coal production, is at risk so long as it lacks diversification and regardless of misleading rhetoric to the contrary. “The real story in West Virginia is that the state regularly experiences periods of great economic growth as measured by gross domestic product — but without any corresponding increase in jobs and incomes,” one analyst said. “In other words, coal and gas are worlds unto themselves, generating revenue and profits for shareholders and out-of-state interests while doing nothing for the West Virginia’s economy.”

An energy trade journal reports that the U.S. coal industry continues to struggle in the face of market shifts that favor other fuel sources: “Coal volume and coal jobs have remained fairly flat over the past two years as strong export markets have been offset by an ongoing structural decline in domestic demand.”