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A future for Coal Country?
Posted on: 06/21/2016
APPALACHIA Ohio (June 21, 2016) - With the decline of the coal industry in Appalachia, there are plenty of ideas being floated on how to revive the region's economy. Jim Branscome calls his the "Appalachian Homestead Act," an idea he detailed in recent op-ed articles in some of the region's largest newspapers. He proposes using land the federal government would purchase from bankrupted coal companies to help people in Appalachia revive the economy and, in turn, restore hope.
"People not having access to those kinds of things is what keeps an economy in a backwards state and limits the opportunity for people to think there's a chance for advancement for themselves and their children," said Branscomb.
In his op-ed article Branscome writes, "...the lack of money and hope is what combines to produce poverty." He says the critical element of his proposal is getting people in the mood to restore a sense of pride and progress. But he admits his optimism is tempered by reporting for decades on a region that remains, in his words, "at the bottom of the poorest."
"Despite all of this advocacy, and despite all of the political power and newspaper power that was brought, we still haven't managed to change the fundamental economic basis of those areas and homesteading is one way to do that," added Branscomb.
Branscome compares his idea to when the West was settled, envisioning the Appalachian Homestead Act providing people land to farm and garden, graze livestock and create business opportunities. He says it may be "today's single best solution to the enduring problem of mountain poverty." According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, 22 million tons of coal was produced in 2014, less than half of the amount during coal production's peak in Ohio in 1970.
A future for Coal Country?
With the decline of the coal industry in Appalachia, there are plenty of ideas being floated on how to revive the region's economy. Jim Branscome calls his the "Appalachian Homestead Act," an idea he detailed in recent op-ed articles in some of the region's largest newspapers. He proposes using land the federal government would purchase from bankrupted coal companies to help people in Appalachia revive the economy and, in turn, restore hope.
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