Dozens of coal plants have closed in Pennsylvania over the past two decades, as they struggled to compete with cheaper natural gas.  Recent proposals in Harrisburg for a carbon price–that could reduce pollution while sending some money to help those communities–have been held up by opponents who say it would prematurely kill coal jobs.   People that want to tackle climate change and coal boosters often talk past each other. But what if they had to come together?  StateImpact Pennsylvania’s Rachel McDevitt wanted to see what that could look like.  She visited Centralia, Washington–a community about the size of Johnstown, Pennsylvania–that has been planning for the end of coal’s role in its local economy for more than a decade. In part one of a series on Centralia’s transition, Rachel reports on how the plant owners, labor groups, and environmentalists decided on a deal.

Thirteen years ago, a coal-fired power plant in Centralia, Washington made a deal with that state to close by 2025 and give 55 million dollars to help the community transition.  As Pennsylvania plants have closed, similar funds were not set up.  The transition money was divided into three pots: new energy technology, community and economic development and energy efficiency. For part 2 of a series on whether Centralia's transition holds lessons for Pennsylvania, StateImpact Pennsylvania’s Rachel McDevitt went to the western Washington city to look at a few examples from the more than 70 projects that have been awarded so far.

The small city of Centralia in Washington state had a chance to plan for the end of a major fossil-fuel based employer, thanks to a deal with that state that provided a 55 million dollar transition fund.  Now, several studies have shown that the “Centralia approach” helped grow income and jobs at a faster rate than the national average.  But those are just numbers on a page. Thousands of people are dealing with their own challenges every day.  In the final part of a series on Centralia’s transition, StateImpact Pennsylvania’s Rachel McDevitt talks with people and small business owners to see how they’re thinking about the economy as they prepare for the shut down of a major employer–the coal power plant.