The U.S. coal mining industry will see a modest and short-lived rebound in 2014, driven by more production in Western states after two successive years of declines, according to a government forecast released Tuesday.

The Energy Information Administration projected a 36 million ton increase in coal production for the year, to 1.04 billion tons. That's up 3.6 percent from 2013 figures.

Low prices for natural gas have been largely to blame for coal's decline in recent years. But that pressure began to ease in 2013 as gas prices rose and coal regained some of its once-dominant share in the electricity generation business, the EIA said.

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