Coal

Lessons from environmental and economic restoration efforts in the Ruhr Valley could help usher Appalachia into a new era.

In "Germany’s Appalachia," the last coal mine is closing. Can renewable energy and technology replace a quietly disappearing industry?

After a summer spent learning about climate change in Germany and the US, Climate & Energy Intern Gavriela Reiter found that while both countries must confront the question of a phase-out of coal, they are having very different conversations.

We toured the US Appalachia region with energy expert Timon Wehnert to visit communities in Kentucky, New York, and Pennsylvania and see how they are transitioning from a coal-based economy. 

A discussion in Whitesburg, Kentucky featured a talk by Timon Wehnert of the Wuppertal Institute as part of a tour of US coal communities sponsored by the Heinrich Böll Foundation North America.

How some former coal regions have transformed themselves in preparation for life after coal.

A new law that took effect in Poland earlier this month could kill growing competition from land-based wind farms by expanding setback requirements tenfold and increasing tax burdens.

Despite an ongoing freeze on state policies to boost clean energy in Ohio, efforts to increase energy efficiency and renewable energy are underway in Cleveland and the rest of Cuyahoga County.

2015 saw Polish PV increase by 240% and wind power generation by 40%. Despite these impressive numbers, Poland still remains the kingdom of coal.  

As it is in Ohio and elsewhere in the United States, the coal industry in Poland is declining amid economic and environmental pressures. And the industry’s political and cultural importance is prompting calls for government action to save it.