Submit oil train comments

The Washington Department of Ecology is seeking public input regarding the proposal to bring 11 loaded oil trains per week through Spokane to Grays Harbor. I asked the DOE to include Spokane in its draft environmental impact statement, but the department essentially ignored all communities between North Dakota and Centralia.

If the people of Spokane don’t know about this, how can they submit a comment? If they don’t submit a comment, how will our government agencies know what’s at stake?

Thirty cities, including Vancouver, Portland and Los Angeles, have passed resolutions opposing much smaller terminals. The State Environmental Policy Act says that if a project is likely to have significant adverse impacts that can’t be avoided or mitigated, it may be rejected. For example, if fatalities cannot be avoided or mitigated.

Citizens have until midnight Nov. 30 to submit a comment. Comments may be submitted through Ecology’s portal: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/geographic/graysharbor/terminals.html. The crab and oyster industries discovered that their scoping comments were misplaced a year ago and not listed in the public records.

Don Steinke

Vancouver