Coal Country Strike Team launches with agreement to help Utah's impacted areas
The Utah Coal Country Strike Team has signed a first-of-its-kind agreement to help Utah’s Coal Country (Carbon and Emery counties) diversify their economy. The agreement puts in place local leadership for the execution of the Utah Coal Country Strike Team work plan, which includes workforce training, housing revitalization, tourism infrastructure and customized economic development incentives. The cities of Price and Castle Dale, the Southeastern Utah Association of Local Governments, Utah State University Eastern, and the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah signed the agreement.
“The Utah Coal Country Strike Team complements our community’s vision to diversify, invest and secure a bright future for residents,” said Price Mayor Mike Kourianos, who, along with Castle Dale Mayor Danny Van Wagoner, co-chairs the effort. “I’m thrilled to see two public universities join arms with us as we create a better future for our children and grandchildren.”
The coal communities of Carbon and Emery counties suffer from a decade-long recession, even as the state of Utah has thrived. Utah leads the nation in job growth since 2010, while jobs in Utah’s Coal Country have declined by 16 percent. The region suffers from high unemployment, net out-migration, poverty, depreciating home prices and an opioid death rate three times the national average.
“‘The disappearance of coal mines and an uncertain future for our coal-fired power plants creates a significant challenge for us,” said Van Wagoner. “The Strike Team will help us transition our economy. We welcome this partnership and the future looks bright.”
The Utah Coal Country Strike Team has the potential to serve as a national model for others to follow as the nation transitions to renewable energy, organizers say. The U.S. currently has approximately 150 coal-dependent communities. A recent report by the Brookings Institution concluded these communities will continue to face significant economic hardship because of stagnant electricity demand, advances in competing generation technologies, unfavorable export conditions and concerns about a changing climate.