Last week’s release of the third report in our trade and transportation included a briefing in the Tri-Cities following a meeting with the Tri-Cities Herald editorial board. The Herald’s story was picked up in The News Tribune.

Adding more jobs and helping the state compete globally for export trade are among the benefits to expanding Washington’s rail system to accommodate a proposed increase in coal traffic, officials say.

“The competition is intense,” Richard Davis, president of the Washington Research Council, told about 20 Tri-City leaders Thursday. “We have an opportunity, I think, now to take advantage of a once-in-a-generation expansion of export activity.”

Coal, along with agriculture, already represents a major portion of what is exported from Washington ports, Davis said.

The final report in the series will be released next week.