1. How big is the US coal industry, and what is its growth trajectory?
US coal employment peaked in the 1920s and the whole sector (mining, transport, and power plants) currently supports about 174,000 jobs. In 2018, US mines produced about 756 million short tons of coal, the majority of which (544 million short tons) was burned in coal-fired power plants to generate 966 billion kWh of electricity, about 24% of all electricity generated in the US.
