That’s the amount coal companies would annually ship to Asia if three export docks in the Pacific Northwest are built. But Wyoming’s miners must first convince a skeptical public in Oregon and Washington that shipping the carbon-dioxide-laden, Btu-rich mineral abroad is a good idea.

Last week, the Wyoming Infrastructure Authority, a state agency, and Arch Coal attempted to do just that, welcoming three visitors from the Pacific Northwest on a three-day, two-night, all-expenses-paid trip.

The trio, accompanied by a bevy of company and state officials, toured the Black Thunder coal mine and the coal-fired Dry Fork power plant and admired the gleaming public buildings built with tax money from the industry.

The message: Coal’s not as dirty as you think, and it can be good for your economy too.

“We had a prime rib dinner last night,” marveled Gary Archer, a city councilman from Kelso, Washington, a town neighboring one of the proposed ports. “These guys got it made up here. They got everything they need, except public perception.”

The tour is part of a larger charm offensive by Wyoming officials to sell people from the Pacific Northwest on coal exports. Concerns there range from global warming to the coal dust and traffic congestion caused by snaking rail trains.

Gov. Matt Mead toured Millennium Bulk Terminals in Longview, Washington, just across the Cowlitz River from Kelso, in June.

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