Coal Countrys executive producer, MariLynn Evans, tells us what that means for the people of Appalachia. Aileen TorresThe coal industry is the primary source of jobs in mining towns. What are the present alternatives? It is a tragedy that in the coal fields of West Virginia people live in a monoeconomy that has been controlled by King Coal for Breitling Navitimer Moonphase Chronograph watches generations. There is such economic desperation in that regionone of the poorest in the country, but the richest in coalthat people have little choice between working for coal, working a minimumwage job, or leaving the state.
That is our heritage. When there is a downturn in the local market, people from the coal fields leave for places like Cleveland or Detroit. However, there are no jobs in the rubber factories anymore, the few jobs that coal provides even more desperately held by the people.What other industries can lead to economic evolution in these communities, and how can you get those industries interested in these places? Many Breitling Navitimer Range watches communities have developed green industry. In West Virginia alone, tourism is responsible for more revenue than coal. Towns like Shepherdstown and Lewisburg have little or no coal, and they are flourishing through arts and culture. Other places in West Virginia attract tourism through rafting, skiing, and hiking. The concern has been that there is not this type of diversity in the coal fields.
Some would argue thats because that is the way Breitling Sports Series Chronograph watches coal companies want it, and they have contributed to this current state.It is very difficult to attract any industry that is not extractive [of the land]. It is to the benefit of industries like coal to do business in areas where there are no people. Unfortunately, what has happened over the years is that these little communities, these hollers in Appalachia, are disappearing,
