Gov. Matthew Mead sent Secretary of the Army John McHugh and the Army Chief of Engineers and Commanding Gen. Thomas P. Bostick a letter concerning the federal ruling to block coal exports.
In the letter, which was sent out last Tuesday, Mead expressed his support of the Custer Spur of the BNSF railway project. Gov. Mead believes this project will improve infrastructure and business readiness. According to his opening statement in the letter, it will also provide substantial job and economic growth as well as an increase in the country’s global competitiveness.
“I support a thoughtful, thorough environmental impact analysis of this project under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA),” Mead wrote.
Mead also thanked both McHugh and Bostick for the opportunity to comment on the scope of the proposed environmental impact statement for the Gateway Pacific Terminal project.
This project is being planned and will take place in Bellingham, Wash. The multi-commodity export facility will create 1,250 permanent family wage jobs and generate nearly $140 million annually.
Mead then expressed his opposition to requiring a programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS). He believes that this form of analysis looks at coal in the same way that global warming and greenhouse gas emissions are looked upon and then uses this reasoning to not pursue the project.
“The environmental review mechanism should not dictate a result, but an ill-advised broad PEIS that looks only at coal would do just that. It would stifle valuable coal exports by purposely including review elements that are not relevant and are aimed at a preordained conclusion,” he wrote.
So far, 12 Democrat legislators in Washington have expressed their opposition to the two projects. The 18 mile-long coal trains daily restricting access to a ferry frequently used by commuters in the Seattle area being one of their main arguing points.
“The gravity of the Gateway Pacific Terminal proposal is such that the impacts, both positive and negative, will be felt in all parts of Washington,” a joint letter from the legislators reads.
The legislators also state that a large portion of public investment will be used to launch the project, impacting Washington’s transportation system. The current infrastructure will have to be altered to accommodate coal exports.
During the public scoping phase, Lt. Gen. Bostick is taking comments for the proposed expansion at the Gateway Pacific Terminal in Washington State.
