Green River Star -

GILLETTE — For the first time since before 1885, the annual United States energy consumption from renewable sources outpaced coal, according to a new report released Thursday by the federal U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Market pressures from cheap natural gas and reduced production continues to drag down the nation’s thermal coal industry.

Compared to 2018, last year’s consumption of coal in the U.S. was down nearly 15%, the EIA reports.

At the same time, total consumption from renewable sources grew by 1%.

Last year, coal accounted for 11.3 quadrillion British thermal uni...