CHARLESTON, W.Va. — A native of Cabell County sees a clear ongoing transition to what comes after coal underway in southern West Virginia.
“There’s debate about how fast that transitioning’s happening,” said Brandon Dennison, founder and CEO of the Coalfield Development Corporation based in Wayne.
“But, if our communities are going to survive, we’ve got to figure out some new industries that can be successful and that people can earn wages that they can raise a family on.”
Dennison is one of the participants from West Virginia in “From the Ashes,” a documentary focused on what’s next for the coal industry under President Donald Trump, which premieres Sunday at 9 p.m. on National Geographic Channel.
The film debuted at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City after being introduced by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
See the trailer for “From The Ashes” HERE.
The documentary includes people in West Virginia communities along those from across the U.S. who are dealing “with the legacy of the coal industry and what its future should be under the Trump Administration,” according to preview information.
“It is a very, very scary time as the coal industry continues to struggle, but there is an opportunity in this scary time,” Dennison told MetroNews.
“I think the coal industry has left a big void in southern West Virginia but, out of that void, I really do believe something new and maybe even better can grow up.”
Dennison’s Coalfield Development Corporation is a community housing and development organization operating in five West Virginia counties: Wayne, Lincoln, Mingo, McDowell and Cabell.
The organization’s work is focused of five social enterprises that include sustainable construction, mine land reclamation and remediation, arts and culture, sustainable agriculture and the solar industry.
“We hire unemployed people to staff these enterprises,” Dennison, a native of Ona, explained.
Currently, there are 55 trainees on what’s called a 33-6-3 plan.
They work 33 hours each week, at starting salaries of $10.50 per hour, attend six hours of community college classes since all participants finish with an associate degree and receive three hours of life skills training.
In addition to the trainees, the Coalfield Development Corporation has issued more than 300 professional certifications through training courses.
“No silver bullets, certainly no catch-all solutions for all the problems of the coalfields, but we do have some viable paths forward for laid off coal miners,” he said.