The U.S. has a huge reserve of coal, and reduced reliance on imported oil could simplify the geopolitical situation, and perhaps reduce tensions. Increased coal use might help revitalize rail networks, which could end up with some human and freight transportation spin-off benefits. Modern methods of burning coal reduce toxic pollution, though not C02, a major contributor to global warming. So, aside from that pesky global climate calamity, coal looks pretty good if that's as far as you go with the analysis. But it's not the whole story.
Coal comes from mines, strip mines mainly.
Coal mines are in places like Wyoming, Kentucky, West Virginia and Indiana. Frankly, the press doesn't seem much interested in environmental effects in places deemed unglamorous by the coastaphilic press. It's true that reclamation of strip mined lands has made a lot of progress compared to the past, but this process still leaves behind a fundamentally altered and depauperated landscape. It doesn't end there. So was the Exxon Valdez, but somehow that mattered.