By Taylor Kuykendall

Since 2009, the American Coal Council has gathered a small group of young coal industry professionals each year to encourage their careers in the coal industry. This year, the group is taking on the challenging topic of "changing the narrative" around coal.

Jason Hayes, associate director of the ACC, said the Tomorrow's Leadership Council annual class usually includes about 15 to 20 people new to the industry. The program consists of a variety of networking events, conferences and an annual project designed to immerse the young professionals in the industry and get them invested in it for the long term.

"They become part of a family essentially," Hayes said. "It's a big industry, but at the same time, it's not a big industry. People know each other, so it's a very close-knit relationship."

Each leadership council class is made up of professionals from across the industry, including coal producers, coal consumers, coal transporters and other associated businesses. In addition to working on individual professional development with other members of the ACC, participants are exposed to top-level executives across the spectrum of coal-related industries that span "from the hole in the ground to the plug in the wall."

“I hear less negativity from my parents' generation about coal.”

 Brian Kopp, fuels consulting specialist, Black & Veatch

Hayes said the idea is to build bridges between coal-related sectors. The annual program has graduated more than 60 executives "who have greatly extended their professional skills and networks throughout the industry," according to the most recent issue of the ACC magazine.

"I had heard about the program through my colleagues who have been working in the coal industry for years," said Erik Dopper, a participant in the program and business development manager with coal shipper United Bulk Terminals USA Inc. "It seemed interesting as it is a great way to learn about the industry in more detail, meet current industry participants and future industry leaders."

Brian Kopp, a 24-year-old fuels consulting specialist for global engineering, consulting and construction firm Black & Veatch Corp., is a part of the 2014 leadership council class. He said his ability to discuss topics such as the impact of coal on electricity prices, grid reliability and environmental impact reduction with those who may be opposed to the industry as greatly improved since starting the program.

"I can't speak as well for other age groups, but among my age group, the narrative of coal seems to be fairly negative," Kopp said. "Sensational photos of polar bears walking on ever-shrinking polar ice caps and the soup-like smog at the Beijing 2008 Olympics have propagated across social media, inciting negative feelings against anything that could cause pollution or harm the environment. I hear less negativity from my parents' generation about coal."

Coal's " dirty" image problem is something that the industry has been trying to shake as it struggles under public policies stacking up against coal burning and mining. The industry has been challenged in hiring young people, and the top ranks of the industry have rapidly changed hands in recent months.

"The industry's bad image and the fact that it is an older industry make it a less attractive option for younger people," Dopper said. "To tackle this problem, I think we need to tackle the image issue and people will follow shortly."

The leadership council's annual research project, focused on "changing the narrative" around coal, seeks to address the industry's image woes. Dopper said he hopes the project will be a "step in the right direction" in reversing coal's negative public image.

Hayes said the ACC is asking how the industry can move past the "perception of coal as something bad and get it recognized as a valuable energy resource." He said one way to address that point is showing the declines in emissions of nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide and particulate emissions, which he said has fallen 90% since the 1970s.

"In any other industry, if they were able to reduce their emissions by 90%, their executives, the government, environmental groups would all be doing cartwheels in the street," Hayes said. "So, how do we get that information out to the public and make it clear that not only is the coal industry providing 800,000 direct and indirect jobs across the country, but it's doing it at the same time it is rapidly improving its environmental performance, its efficiency and all those sorts of things?"

“In any other industry, if they were able to reduce their emissions by 90%, their executives, the government, environmental groups would all be doing cartwheels in the street.”

 Jason Hayes, associate director, American Coal Council

Polls on the industry have produced mixed results. A Gallup poll from March 2013 found most Americans prefer their energy to come from solar, wind and natural gas than oil, coal or nuclear generation. A Rasmussen Reports poll from May found that 48% of likely voters had a favorable or very favorable view of the U.S. coal industry. And an industry-backed poll from the same month found Americans were at least somewhat worried about the effect on electricity prices that could come from new U.S. EPA rules opposed by the coal industry.

"What I find is that most people simply don't know much about the industry or what coal is even used for," Kopp told SNL Energy. "What I'm offered is an opportunity to provide insight into the industry to those who might otherwise only hear about coal from mainstream (i.e., anti-coal) media sources."

Kopp, who noted that he was speaking as an individual and not for his company in comments on the program, said that when he talks about coal use, he points out that while coal does emit pollutants when it is burned, the industry has made great strides in reducing those emissions already. People he has spoken with outside the industry have generally been receptive to the notion that poorer countries are more worried about a lack of energy and the implications for their survival than pollution, and that eliminating coal from those countries would "condemn those people to a crippling poverty very, very few in the U.S. have experienced."

Kopp said the narrative of coal in the U.S. must be framed "honestly and pragmatically." He said the narrative must also include discussion of those hurt most by high energy prices. "Those promoting coal must aggressively champion the moral high ground as providing affordable, reliable electricity … while supporting advances in technology to mitigate environmental impacts."

Kopp's comments are consistent with a broader industry message that seeks to position coal as solution to global energy poverty. While Peabody Energy Corp. has largely led the way on the argument with its "Advanced Energy for Life" campaign, the industry has quickly increased focus on that argument. The coal industry has also attempted to influence the debate with the discussion of the benefits of carbon dioxide emissions, largely supported by an industry-backed study from Roger Bezdek, founder and president of Management Information Services.

When Peabody launched its campaign, Bruce Nilles, senior campaign director of the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign, told SNL Energy that the coal industry's campaign to align itself as a solution to global energy poverty is a sign the industry's back is clearly against the wall." Mary Anne Hitt, director of the Beyond Coal campaign, said the industry has improperly conflated the benefits of coal with the benefits of electricity.