Much of Illinois sits on a vast bed of bituminous coal.
Coal was first discovered by the French explorer, La Salle (René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle) in 1679 as he made his trip of discovery down the Mississippi River. LaSalle recorded the first use of coal for fuel.
.
image from the 2017 DNR report
The University of Illinois has made significant contributions to coal studies. Read Professor Helaine Silverman’s 2023 article, published in Illinois Heritage. Click here.
“Clean Coal” is possible: the Abbott Power Plant on campus!
Other major contributions of the University of Illinois to coal studies: 
. AND SEE BELOW —> 
In a remarkable coincidence to the University of Illinois’ engagement with mining (discussed by Professor Helaine Silverman in her 2023 article, noted above and Click here), the University of Birmingham in the UK had a prominent Mining Department (1902-1966). “The department’s vocational teaching approach was considered radical for the time and even included building a ‘model’ mine beneath the Edgbaston site in 1905. As well as providing qualified engineers for mines throughout Britain and its Empire many staff members became key advisors to governments and official bodies, particularly around safety and coal processing techniques. Ultimately the Mining Department was overtaken by the growing focus on oil and petrochemical processing, as imported oil increasingly replaced domestic coal as a preferred (cheaper) fuel. The Mining Department was subsumed into the new, expanded School of Chemical Engineering in 1966 which continues today.” (University of Birmingham Conference: “Remembering Coal. Legacy, Memories, Heritage”- June 16, 2025) What makes the coincidence even more notable is that between 2012-2019 scholars from the University of Illinois collaborated with the University of Birmingham’s Ironbridge International Institute for Cultural Heritage with Ironbridge Gorge having been the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution based on Abraham Darby’s pioneering discovery in 1709 of how to smelt iron using coke.
STRIP MINING AND THE ENVIRONMENT
On April 19, 2021 the United Mine Workers of America published an extraordinary statement in which it acknowledged the end of the coal era and the need to help coal communities transition to the new energy economy. 
Read the statement and the response by economist Paul Krugman by clicking on the embedded blue hyperlinks.
We call attention to these three articles:
https://extension.illinois.edu/blogs/building-entrepreneurial-communities/2019-09-04-beyond-coal-illinois-just-getting-started
https://ieefa.org/ieefa-u-s-mega-miner-peabody-concedes-american-coal-has-little-value-and-dim-future/
https://psmag.com/environment/does-coal-have-a-future-in-the-united-states
But abandoning a coal mine is not like closing the door of your house and walking away. Read the article below about abandoned mine lands.
An excellent documentary by John Woodall (Principia College) presents the crisis of coal in Alton,IL. where a polluting major coal plant closed. But it left a visually and environmentally blighted landscape in its wake with devastating consequences for the East Alton residents whose town lost its tax base, whose residents lost good paying jobs, and whose air and soil were contaminated.
Severe health issues remain for many miners (CLICK), as reported by ABC News on April 29, 2025:
The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26: October 31-November 12) issued yet another death knell for coal.
On the other hand, Prairie State Energy produced a compelling animation (2017) arguing that its community-owned coal plant is producing clean, sustainable energy in addition to jobs and a great contribution to the economy. Here is the PSE video: CLICK
PSE is based in Marissa, in southern Illinois. This is really interesting because Marissa also has adopted solar energy in some of the farm fields. Here is a fascinating 15-minute audio program about the same issue of coal mining in southern Illinois and the potential of solar energy: CLICK
_____________________________________________________________________________