The Washington County Chamber of Commerce held their State of the Economy presentation on Thursday. Headlining the meeting was Brook Ward, President and CEO of the Washington Health System. His discussion centered on the pending merger between WHS and UPMC. He made the audience aware of the $500,000 negative impact the region would suffer if the hospital was forced to close due to declining revenues and increasing costs. Washington and Jefferson College Economics professors Robert Dunn, Ph.D. and Zachary Klingensmith, Ph.D. cooperatively showed Washington County’s place in the regional and national economic picture. Both indicated that the Washington County economy is stable even though we will be experiencing population decline over the next several decades. A panel discussion was held with members of the ARCH2 coalition. The Appalachian Regional Clean Hydrogen Hub is a coalition of companies trying to decarbonize hydrogen to use as a clean fuel to enhance the region’s energy transition. They intend to make use of natural gas as a feedstock to produce hydrogen that can be used in fuel cells for transportation, residential and industrial uses. Representatives said that with a $900 million federal investment, a more than $5 billion industry can be created locally.