The news last week that Belmont County Coal Resources Inc. would be shuttering the American Century Mine in June is yet further proof that our leaders need to rethink the future for this region.
The closure will leave 106 employees without a job. That's more than 100 families likely losing their primary source of income.
As we've noted previously, it's imperative that we reimagine what our Ohio Valley could be. The coal and natural gas industries will continue to provide some jobs into the future, but for how much longer? We can't afford to sit around and be content to do what we've always done, and hope it works. Complacency will lead us to irrelevance.
It's time to forge a new path forward for the Ohio Valley.