News
Fight Intensifies Over NW Coal Exports
By Phuong Le
The Associated Press
BELLINGHAM, Wash. (AP) — The progressive col-
lege town of Bellingham, Wash., is known for its stunning
scenery, access to the outdoors and eclectic mix of aging
hippies, students and other residents. But lately it’s turned
into a battleground in the debate over whether the Pacific
Northwest should become the hub for exporting U.S. coal
to Asia.
Five ports proposed for Washington and Oregon could
ship as much as 140 million tons of coal, mostly from the
Rockies, where it could travel by rail through communities
such as Spokane, Seattle and Eugene, Ore., before being
loaded onto ships bound for Asia.
The Cherry Point marine terminal would be the largest
coal-export port in the U.S., exporting up to 54 million tons
of bulk commodities, mostly coal.
With so much at stake, critics and supporters have inten-
sified their pitches in recent weeks, running TV and radio
spots, doorbelling homes and turning to phone banks and
social media to rally support for their side.
Hundreds packed a public hearing in Bellingham last
week to tell regulators what should be analyzed during the
environmental review process. Hearings in Seattle, Vancou-
ver and Spokane are also expected to draw crowds.
``This flies in the face about what are we about as a
region, as far as our leadership on building a clean econo-
my and saying no to coal. We’re seen as a region that leads
with innovation,’’ said Kimberly Larson, with the Power
Past Coal campaign. ``Are we going backward or for-
ward?’’
Environmentalists, some Northwest tribes and others
want regulators to study the cumulative effects all five proj-
ects: increased train traffic, carbon emissions from burning
coal overseas and other health and environmental concerns.
Project supporters say it’s not practical to lump the proj-
ects together. Only some ports will be built, they say, and
each has different circumstances.
``Most of the people who are proposing that just view it
as an opportunity to grind everything to a halt,’’ said Craig
Cole, a spokesman for developer Seattle-based SSA
Marine. ``We are expecting
a very full review of the
impacts of this project.’’
Even as environmental
reviews have started for
three coal-export projects at
Cherry Point, Port of Mor-
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Page 10 The Portland Skanner November 7, 2012
row, Ore., and Longview Wash., the Army Corps of Engi-
neers hasn’t decided whether it’ll conduct a broader
environmental review for all the projects.
``We haven’t made that determination yet,’’ said corps
spokeswoman Michael Coffey. ``We’re not saying yes and
we’re not saying no either.’’
Two other projects are proposed in Oregon at Coos Bay
and St. Helens. Another in Grays Harbor County, Wash.,
was shelved over the summer, after the developer decided
to explore other terminal uses.
Meanwhile, a trade group that includes the three largest
U.S. coal producers has been running TV and newspaper
ads to tout jobs, tax revenues and other economic benefits.
``We feel that someone is going to supply the coal to the
ports that need it. ... The question is: where is that coal
going to come from?’’ said Lauri Hennessey, a spokes-
woman for the Alliance for Northwest Jobs & Exports,
which includes BNSF Railway and companies such as
Peabody Coal, Arch Coal and Ambre Energy with stakes in
the Northwest projects. ``That coal can be sent through
Washington and Oregon ports in a way that’s environmen-
tally responsible.’’
Several union leaders and some lawmakers say the region
can’t afford to turn down well-paying jobs. The company
The Army Corps of Engineers
hasn’t decided to conduct a
broader environmental review
for all the projects
says the $665 million project will create 1,250 permanent
direct and indirect jobs and generate $11 million in tax rev-
enues; critics are skeptical.
``Some groups have demonized a natural resource and
they think nobody on the planet should burn this material. I
disagree. We need jobs,’’ said Mike Elliott, chairman of the
state’s Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Train-
men.
Trains already carry coal from the Rockies through the
state for export through British Columbia. But Bellingham
resident Lynn Berman and others fear the increase in coal
shipments — about nine mile-long trains a day — could
threaten fisheries, create health problems and foul the area’s
natural resources.
``It’s such a bad idea,’’ said Berman, who worked the
phone bank one afternoon in the field office in downtown
Belling-
ham set up by ReSources, a local group that has been
organizing against the project. ``I think it will impact every-
one in this community.’’
Volunteers have made 32,000 phone calls and hope to
make tens of thousands more to educate people about the
project, said Matt Petryni, Power Past Coal Campaign
organizer. The Sierra Club is also running TV ads in East-
ern Washington to warn of risks. It has plans to run more
ads statewide and in Oregon.
The Cherry Point area is noted for extensive herring
spawning grounds. It’s also known burial grounds for the
Lummi Nation. The tribe recently came out against the
project.
``We do not want any further disturbance,’’ said Jewell
James, who manages the tribe’s sovereignty and treaty pro-
tection office. ``It’s also a treaty rights issue. This always
has been a major fishing and harvesting site for our fisher-
men.’’
On a recent afternoon, SSA Marine’s Cole pointed to the
site, near marine terminals for two oil refineries and an alu-
minum smelter. ``This site has been intended for this
purpose,’’ said Cole, a former Whatcom County Council-
man. He said the company plans to follow the highest
environmental standards.
``The hoops that the company has to jump through are
very extraordinary. They’re really high. You have to prove
that you can avoid impacts, minimize them or mitigate
them,’’ Cole said.
But neighbors and others who gathered in Cindy
Franklin’s living room for a letter-writing workshop that
same afternoon weren’t so sure.
``I’m afraid that this new race to get all this coal out of the
ground, sell it under the guise of energy independence ... is
going to destroy our atmosphere,’’ said Franklin, 59, retired
business consultant and environmental activist. ``It’s about
the burning of the coal being a major contributor to climate
change. We need to do all we can to stop this.’’