President Trump
vowed to make
"Coal Great Again"
and restore
the industrial
heartland.
Greg Nemet,
who is a public
affairs professor
at the University of
Wisconsin-Madison,
said coal shipments
in the port
have plunged
as the demand for
renewable energy
soared in recent years.
"It's really
a competition
between coal,
natural gas,
and renewables.
It's cheaper
to make electricity
with natural gas
and with solar,"
Nemet said.
"Coal really
can't compete
with either
of those."
The Associated
Press said
8 million tons
of coal moved
through the
Twin Ports,
the lowest
volume
since 1985.
U.S. coal production
has plunged from
1.2 billion tons in 2008
to 597 million last year.
Despite Trump's
promises to revive
the coal industry,
production continues
to decline.
Last year
a significant
bankruptcy wave
had devastated
the coal industry.
A recent
bankruptcy
of Peabody,
the world's
largest coal
producer.
Trump called
the coal industry
"indestructible" ,
and in 2017
told people that
"We are going to
put our coal miners
back to work."
