"The man President Trump picked to regulate coal believes that mining is simply 'accelerated erosion.'"

Kentucky mining engineer Steven Gardner also believes mountaintop mining is good because it creates flat land. He questions humans' role in climate change and has said there is "no such thing as renewable energy."

And he's set to lead an agency that parted ways with him after his analysis found a stricter coal regulation would cost thousands of mining jobs."

Dylan Brown reports for Greenwire December 11, 2017. [2]