The summit of Black Mountain, Kentucky overlooks a giant mountaintop removal mine in neighboring Virginia. As we stood there with a group of young climate activists a couple months ago, the mine appeared idle. Coal production in Virginia fell 50 percent between 2004 and 2014 and has continued falling, part of a nationwide decline that has driven the largest coal producers into bankruptcy. With the powerful coal industry declining, one might wonder what now stands in the way of a clean energy future for Virginia.

The answer, in a word, is Dominion.

Dominion is the largest electric utility in Virginia. It is also one of the state’s most politically powerful corporations. Dominion has consistently blocked progress on renewable energy and climate change. The utility currently supplies just 3 percent renewable energy. While a 2013 study showed that investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency would be less expensive than building new natural gas plants, Dominion is planning an aggressive buildout of natural gas power plants — with the natural gas to be supplied via the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a joint venture between Duke Energy and, of course, Dominion.