GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) - Wyoming’s most productive coal region has dropped below 300 million tons for the first time in nearly 20 years.
The Gillette News Record reports (https://bit.ly/2jvHj5c ) that Wyoming’s Powder River Basin produced 285.2 million tons of coal in 2016. This is the first time since 1998 the nation’s most productive coal mining area has produced less than 300 million tons.
In 1998 the Powder River Basin produced 293.4 million tons.
In 2015, the basin produced 363.3 million tons of coal, making the decline of 78.1 million tons between then and 2016. That drop is the largest ever single-year drop in production for the basin.
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Information from: The Gillette (Wyo.) News Record, https://www.gillettenewsrecord.com
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