10A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27, 2016
LNG: Pipeline remains a sticking point
Continued from Page 1A
impact of the proposed $6
billion project on state waters.
In addition, the department
noted that Oregon LNG’s appli-
cations lacked evidence that the
project is compatible with local
land use rules.
Last year, the state Land
Use Board of Appeals upheld
Clatsop County’s 2013 decision
to deny a permit for Oregon
LNG’s pipeline that would link
to an export terminal on the
peninsula.
“Your county’s decision
to not approve that pipeline is
really the biggest stumbling
block that they have right
now. That’s the big barrier to
a complete application at this
point,” Ryan said. “If we don’t
have that approval, we can’t
issue a permit, nor can we deny
one, because we don’t have a
complete application.”
‘Keep pushing’
Since it appears the pipeline
will remain a sticking point
for the company into the
foreseeable future, Laurie
Caplan, of Astoria, asked the
panel: “Why are you and other
state agencies having to spend
so much time and talent and
energy to process an application
for a project that, as of now,
can’t go forward because there
is no pipeline?”
Ryan replied that there’s
nothing in state statute that says
a person or organization can’t
apply for a land use permit. “We
get applications for incomplete
projects pretty frequently,” he
said.
“Energy companies have a
very, very long business plan
and time frame, so their MO is
to keep pushing, keep pushing,
keep pushing until something
gives,” he continued, “and so
we anticipate we will continue
to get applications until who
knows.”
If Oregon LNG manages to
resolve the local land use issue
and submits complete appli-
cations, the department would
then send them out for public
review. Citizens and regulatory
agencies on the local, state and
federal levels would examine
the applications while the
department does a technical
review.
“Honestly, we rely upon the
public and our sister agencies
to review those application
materials,” Ryan said, adding
that the state departments
of environmental quality
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major roles. “And, of course,
something like an LNG terminal
and pipeline application gets a
lot more scrutiny than a small
individual driveway expansion
or something like that.”
If the department rejects
Oregon LNG’s applications, the
company could challenge the
decision in court.
What’s more, if Oregon LNG
is eventually granted a license to
operate by the Federal Energy
Regulatory Commission, it’s
possible that the federal agency
could override the adverse
decisions by local and state
agencies.
“There is an issue of federal
pre-emption of local environ-
mental regulations,” Ryan said.
“That is a potential path that I’m
sure the applicants are looking
at.”
“I can tell you: That’s not
something that we would
support,” he continued. “And
we would really want to avoid
that happening, as would the
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The company would have to
demonstrate, however, that the
local environmental regulations
place an unreasonable burden
on them, and “there’s pretty
well-established case law that
states do have the ability to
regulate for environmental
concerns and environmental
issues,” he said.
Bay and Medford, to record
public testimony.
“I would expect us to do
something similar to that if we
do get completed applications
for Oregon LNG,” Castelli said.
Cheryl Johnson — an activist
who has helped lead the charge
against Oregon LNG and its
previous incarnations for more
than a decade — told the panel
that Oregon LNG’s opponents
stand in solidarity with Coos
Bay. She asked the department
to deny the permits for Jordan
Cove, which would set a
precedent “for our community
and our river,” she said.
“We are tired of going to
meetings. And we are tired of
giving testimony. And we are
Standing in solidarity
Right now, the Department tired of writing letters. And we
of State Lands is reviewing have met with every local and
land use permit applications for state and federal agency for 10
another controversial project: years,” she said.
Johnson added that she
the Jordan Cove LNG terminal
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Regulatory Commission to
Pipeline in Coos Bay.
The department — which has grant Oregon LNG authoriza-
until Feb. 8 to decide whether to tion to operate on the Skipanon
issue the permits — held two Peninsula. The company is
well-attended meetings, in Coos also awaiting a decision from
Daniel Kearns, a Portland
land use attorney appointed by
Warrenton to review local land
use applications.
“We have played by the
rules. We have done everything
correctly. We have participated
fully, intelligently, articulately,
over and over and over. Do not
leave us in this situation,” she
said.
Reminding the crowd that
the department is still waiting
for Oregon LNG to resubmit
the permit applications, Ryan
responded: “We play by the
rules also. And we have really
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play by, and that’s what we’ve
been doing all along.”
“I’ve heard, ‘Do the right
thing, do the right thing, do the
right thing.’ And, for me, within
my job, ‘doing the right thing’
means to implement the laws of
the state of Oregon to the best of
my ability,” he continued. “So
that’s what I’m doing. That’s
what we do, and we’re operating
within the legal framework that
we have to work within. I can
commit to doing that.”
Pier 2: Port of Astoria is trying to extend pier’s life
Continued from Page 1A
Leon, responsible for making
a computerized drawing of Pier
2, said the shrill cracks are what
they hope to hear, indicating the
pilings underneath the pier are
still solid. “If they’re rotten, they
sound more like a drum,” he said.
Cain said inspectors also
measure the impedance of each
piling using a resistor graph,
with less resistance indicating
rot in the wood pilings. The
focus on Pier 2, he said, is
because of the open access that
makes it a public route.
Robert Evert, a permit and
project manager with the Port,
said the agency hopes to use the
state’s engineering report to help
staff prioritize repairs needed on
Pier 2, which at 101 years old
has a lot of issues but still holds
up much of the region’s seafood
processing industry, along with
hundreds of workers.
Fix before fail
“One of the things that
we’re trying to get away from
is, unfortunately, the status quo
of decades past is ‘Well, we’ll
just run it until it fails, and then
get a grant to repair it,’” Evert
said. “This way, we’re actually
keeping up on the maintenance,
extending the service life and,
overall, reducing our operational
costs, because we’re repairing
things before they fail.”
The need for a current
engineering report on Pier 2 is
fresh in the mind of the Port. Two
years ago, the agency secured a
$1 million ConnectOregon IV
infrastructure grant to build a
new dock on the eastern side of
Pier 2. But the Port nearly lost
the grant after a gross under-
estimation by engineers on the
cost of the project. The grant
was saved, and the Port has a
brand-new dock on Pier 2, albeit
an empty one.
rotten wood and replacing it
with metal pan decking topped
by concrete, which Evert
said will extend the life of the
surface for another 25 to 30
years.
marine engineer Bill Gunderson
of PND Engineers Inc. of Seattle
to report on its condition.
“Overall, the condition of the
Pier 2 West facility was found
to range from critical to good
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ciencies observed appear to be
Fixing for ¿shing
The engineering report due to deferred maintenance,”
comes as the Port is trying Gunderson’s report said.
Gunderson’s engineering
to secure another state grant,
&RQQHFW2UHJRQ 9, WR ¿[ WKH report, much like the Department
ailing west side of Pier 2, where of Transportation’s now, was
FRPPHUFLDO¿VKLQJERDWVSXOOXS meant to help Port staff prioritize
to the dock alongside the Port’s ¿[HV7KH3RUWHQGHGXSVKLIWLQJ
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
A member of the state Department of Transportation ORQJ¿VKSURFHVVLQJZDUHKRXVH around seafood cranes and
bridge inspection team works during their inspection of to deliver their catch.
blocking access to particularly
The dock they deliver to weak spots.
Pier 2 Tuesday,
belies Pier 2’s importance to
Now the Port is asking the
Separate of any grant cycle, Port had covered the original the seafood industry, with many state for just over $1.5 million,
Evert said Port staff has already wood decking of the pier with pilings bent, broken or missing, not including the agency’s
been trying to extend the life DVSKDOW DV D TXLFN ¿[ %XW WKH and a deck pockmarked with $660,000 local match, to
of Pier 2, which is seemingly wood underneath rotted over holes covered by raised metal overhaul Pier 2’s western dock.
known as much for huge time, leading to issues all over sheeting. Nearly two years ago, The plan is to replace 35,000
potholes and uneven decking as the decking. The Port has been the Port declared an emergency square feet of the failing dock,
taking sections of the pier’s east on the dock and brought in along with the damaged and
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In the past, staffers at the side, cutting out the asphalt and former Astorian and expert missing pilings underneath.
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