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All told, consumption of coal for electricity generation in the U.S. electric power sector fell from a peak of over 1 billion short tons to an estimated 0.7 billion short tons between 2007-2015. At the same time, natural gas consumption rose across a number of states, including many of those with the steepest coal declines.
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In Ohio and Pennsylvania, coal use for power generation decreased by 49% and 44%, respectively. In the Southeast, coal consumption dropped by half in Georgia, North Carolina, and Alabama. Four states – Idaho, Vermont, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia – do not use coal for power generation within their state borders, according to the EIA.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Annual
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