WILLIAMSON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- Innovation and a new alternative energy source can be found right now in the coalfields.

As more companies turn to different techniques to reach coal, some miners are finding themselves looking for a job. Now, one group is doing its part to heat up job prospects and make a difference for the environment.

The group is called The Jobs Project and it's teaming up with Mountain View Solar and Wind Energy out of Berkeley Springs. The idea is to help local communities 'Go Green' while using their own resources and people to get the job done.

On Thursday in Williamson, a new solar panel was unveiled. It's going on top of a health clinic and while it may not look very big, its significance is for its location.

The solar panel was assembled by local coal miners and contractors looking for work, giving a dozen people in the southern coalfields a new job opportunity.

Mike McKechnie, with Mountain View Solar and Wind, says it's not about replacing coal, but creating a new way to boost the economy.

"It lasts a long time, makes energy every time the sun shines, and it will keep doing that for 40-50 years," said McKechnie. "So installing that is a way to help the medical clinic have a lower utility bill. It's an investment that they've made and the investment will pay itself back in this scenario in 7 years or less."

About a dozen people were hired to work on the project, but the group's hope is that more projects like this one will spread across southern West Virginia.