Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been tagged as “community impacts”
A study released Thursday by coal export opponents tallies the economic risks of barging coal down the Columbia River –- from the cost of killing salmon and emitting air pollution to increased accidents and impacts to recreation in the Columbia River Gorge. The report’s author, Ecotrust economist Noah Enelow, suggests that the project’s benefits might not be worth the risks of building …
Montana farmers are struggling to get their wheat to Pacific ports, as weather, construction and traffic take a toll on grain trains. Wheat has been slow to move to the Pacific Northwest for several months and there is now talk of the 2013 crop still being shipped when this year’s harvest begins in late July. That’s not good news for …
A University of Washington study has found residents near rail lines face increased exposure to harmful microscopic particles from diesel emissions. The study also found residents are exposed to larger particles, possibly from coal trains. The study, accepted for publication this month in the online journal Atmospheric Pollution Research, provides some of the first measurements of emission effects of coal …
Taxpayers could be on the hook for hefty traffic mitigation costs Coal and oil traffic jeopardizes other shippers Billings, Mont. — Voluminous and very profitable coal and oil export rail traffic would consume most of the existing rail capacity in the region, displacing other traffic and resulting in higher freight rates for existing rail shippers, according to a new report …
Passengers on an Amtrak Cascades train sat for six hours in Ferndale, Whatcom County, on Sunday night, because a freight train had become uncoupled and blocked the tracks ahead. Train 517 left Vancouver, B.C., for Seattle around 5:45 p.m. with about 300 people aboard, said passenger Rachel Lane, 34, who said she was returning from a birthday trip, accompanied by her …
The masses that stormed the gates of Big Coal in 2013 are turning their fury on Big Oil as the new year opens and the Pacific Northwest considers a future as a massive pipeline on rails connecting the fossil-fuel deposits of Wyoming and North Dakota to the furnaces and factories of Asia. Tens of thousands of regional citizens testified at …
BEIJING — Filthy emissions from China’s export industries are carried across the Pacific Ocean and contribute to air pollution in the Western United States, according to a paper published Monday by a prominent American science journal. The research is the first to quantify how air pollution in the United States is affected by China’s production of goods for export and …
Colombia has ordered US-based coal producer Drummond to stop loading coal in Colombian ports until the company complies with new environmental rules. Under the regulations, coal exporters will no longer be allowed to use barges and cranes to load ships. The rules are aimed at preventing spillage and pollution of the seas. Three weeks ago, Drummond was fined $3.5m (£2.1m) …
For Immediate Release January 8, 2013 Goldman Sachs Infrastructure Partners has sold off its remaining equity investment in Carrix, the parent company of Pacific International Terminals (PIT) and SSA Marine (they were 49% stakeholders). PIT, SSA Marine and Peabody Energy have proposed a 48 million ton per year coal export terminal north of Bellingham, WA at Cherry Point. If built, …
While it may not be the “major victory” that environmental groups are trumpeting in their press release, the Thursday, Jan. 2 ruling by a Yakima federal judge certainly avoids a major defeat in their lawsuit targeting coal dust emissions from BNSF rail cars rolling through Washington state. Lonny Suko, Senior U.S. District Judge, denied a motion to dismiss the July …
