"Coal production from the controversial mountaintop removal mining technique has dropped nearly two thirds in the last six years.

United States mines with permits to use that practice saw a 62 percent decline in production between 2008 and 2014, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said Tuesday.

That compares with a 15 percent drop in all coal output during that time and a 21 percent decrease in production from all surface mining, the EIA said, citing data from various federal and state agencies."

Timothy Cama reports for The Hill July 7, 2015. [2]