She saw this coming.

For Victoria Coptis, executive director of the Center for Coalfield Justice, an environmental advocacy organization, the Clean Power Plan was a significant win. Passed during the Obama Administration, the CPP proposed regulations to emissions of pollutants from power plants across the nation.

But Coptis knew that when Donald Trump was elected, the CPP would be called into question, as the president has called the law “devastative” to the coal industry. The Trump administration has begun the process of repealing the law, which includes a period for public review. That’s why last Tuesday, Nov. 28, Coptis attended a public forum in Charleston, West Virginia, to give her perspective.

And now, the fate of coal country is unsure.

“[The CPP would] improve pollution and make the community healthier,” said Coptis. “[CPP] created economic opportunities to diversify and transition communities like the Greene County area that completely depends on this industry.”

Public hearings like the one Coptis attended are part of the review process necessary to repeal a program so far along in its development. But while there were five different hearings across the country before passing CPP, there has only been one hearing to discuss repealing it—and it was held in Charleston, a town steeped in coal country. And, Coptis noted, West Virginia also voted 70 percent Trump in the 2016 Presidential Election.

“For us, it was very intentional for this administration to pick Charleston for only one CPP repeal hearing across the country,” said Coptis. “And they gave people three weeks notice and scheduled it right after a holiday, so it wasn’t very accessible…in an area where the administration had favorable support.”

At the meeting, conflicting sides of the bill were uncovered.

Opponents expressed about the expected cost to consumers associated with renewable energy. Coal executives warned of the burden the industry will have to endure to meet regulations—excessive hold rates that could result in layoffs.

But Coptis believes this thinking was misguided.

“The comment they made is that this is going to increase rates for consumers,” she said. “That is totally false.”

In fact, she said, the cost of renewable energy to consumers is more comparable to coal then in recent years. Meanwhile, coal bailouts will increase consumer rates more than anything, Coptis said.

“Hearing the coal company executives talk, it’s like it’s only OK for consumers to pay more if it helps the coal industry,” she said. “Even though consumers won’t pay more with renewable energy.”

Coptis isn’t denying that coal companies will encounter a financial burden by the CPP. But she said this burden isn’t new.

“For the first time, [CPP] will make the coal industry internalized the costs that it is implementing on communities,” she said. “[The Center for Coalfield Justice] has been working with people in communities in southwest Pennsylvania for decades that have been baring the costs…it’s about time the coal industry takes on those costs from community members.”

As for the threats to those who depend on coal for the livelihoods, directing the blame at CPP is misguided, she said, as layoffs in the industry are determined by the companies themselves.

“They themselves have mechanized their processes, which has hurt jobs,” she said. “Another thing is the market is dwindling—other countries are not using coal as much.”

Coptis said the Center was involved with strengthening the CPP after it was first introduced, and was pleased that it was the first environmental regulation to actually take into account the economic effects and provide helping measures.

“Regulation creates revenue forces to deal with those impacts,” she said.

For Coptis, it is past time to start looking into the future, beyond the days of coal production.

“Historically, the U.S. has been a world leader and an innovator across the globe,” she said. “Do we want to continue to do that? Or do we want to fall behind on the leader scale and stick with the archaic form of producing energy? Because the rest of the world is going to do this with or without us.”