Lorraine Herder, Sheepherder/Traditional Weaver

The US coal production peaked in 2008 at 1172 million short tons. Between 2008 and 2015, total coal production declined sharply to 897 million short tons, a decline of 23%. In this period, surface coal production declined by 28% whereas underground coal production by 14%. 
Simultaneously, natural gas production dramatically increased by 51%.2 The decline of coal production can be explained by changing market dynamics and federal regulatory environment. 
Historically, key factors underlying the transformation of US coal industry include: i) growing mechanization of coal mining; ii) the Clean Air Act of 1990 that adversely impacted the demand for Appalachian coal in favor of low-sulfur Western coal; iii) the shale gas revolution resulting in dramatic fall in natural gas