Longview Sees Red
Longview, Washington was a sea of red yesterday. Hundreds of us made the trip to the public hearing to show our opposition to the Millennium coal export terminal proposal. The Washington Department of Ecology and Cowlitz County recently released their Draft Environmental Impact Statement for the project, and while we don’t think it goes far enough to assess the negative impacts of the project, the EIS does highlight the enormous emissions it would produce.
There are two more hearings left
- Spokane, WA on Thursday May 26th 1:00-9:00pm
- Pasco, WA on Thursday June 2nd 1:00-9:00pm
You can submit written comments here through June 13th
The public hearing in Longview was the first of three to be held during the brief comment period. Eight hours were set aside for opponents and proponents to voice their comments. Each speaker was given given two minutes, and they were chosen by a lottery system. We saw speakers from Longview and speakers from as far away as Montana. We saw doctors, biologists, and teachers voice serious concerns that range from health risks to people with asthma, impacts to fisheries, and the problems associated with increased rail traffic in small communities.
A small band of Millennium coal terminal supporters complained that we were bringing an outside agenda to the small town. But folks from Montana and Idaho reminded us that if the coal terminal is built in Longview, it will have impacts far from Cowlitz county. We’ve succeeded in blocking most of the recent fossil fuel expansion projects in the Pacific Northwest. We’re hoping the Millennium coal export terminal joins that list soon.
