A U.S. appeals court has struck down a moratorium on coal leasing from federal lands. Wednesday's ruling could open the door to future coal sales from publicly owned reserves of the fuel that’s a major source of climate-changing greenhouse gases. It marks a setback for environmentalists and was hailed by industry representatives who said the move could allow some mining projects to advance. Yet the demand for new coal leases is uncertain: Coal production from federal lands dropped sharply over the past decade after many electric utilities switched to less polluting natural gas and renewables.
