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Vancouver Asks For Thorough Oil Study

Washington agencies are holding two public meetings Monday and Tuesday on a controversial oil terminal proposed for the Port of Vancouver.
Washington agencies are holding two public meetings Monday and Tuesday on a controversial oil terminal proposed for the Port of Vancouver.

By Aaron Corvin

Vancouver neighborhoods cut off from fire and police protection by increased train traffic. A highly volatile commodity traveling near homes. An industrial area prone to liquefying in an earthquake.

Those are among more than 100 areas of concern the city of Vancouver wants state regulators to include in their examination of the environmental impacts of a proposed oil-by-rail operation at the Port of Vancouver.

City officials on Monday presented to the City Council a draft 12-page document outlining Vancouver's concerns about the proposal by Tesoro Corp. and Savage Companies to run a facility capable of handling as much as 380,000 barrels of crude per day for eventual conversion into transportation fuels. It would be the largest such operation in the Northwest.

The city will send its concerns to the state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council, or EFSEC, as part of the council's scoping process to decide what should be included in the environmental review of the project. The deadline for submitting remarks is Dec. 18.

Senior Planner Jon Wagner told city councilors that thousands of people have submitted comments to EFSEC. "I feel confident the project will be thoroughly reviewed," he said.

Continue reading this story at The Columbian ...

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The Columbian