Salt Lake City • The Trump administration on Thursday announced the approval of two coal mining projects in southern Utah, including one nestled between two national parks in the state’s red rock region.
The U.S. Department of the Interior announced the mining projects in a news release Thursday, declaring "the war on coal is over," touting new jobs the projects will create and saying they will further the administration's goal of "energy dominance."
A $12 million project to expand a mine run by Alton Coal Development LLC will produce an estimated two tons (1,800 kilograms) of coal each year on land about 10 miles (16 kilometers) west of Bryce Canyon National Park and about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northeast of Zion National Park.