By Roy L Hales
The oil train you see above may be one of the last to pass through Hood River, Oregon. Three weeks ago a near catastrophic derailment/fire occurred in the neighbouring town of Mosier. The town is still dealing with the aftereffects. Thursday the Federal Rail Authority’s (FRA) Preliminary report blamed the incident on Union Pacific’s failure to maintain their tracks. Now the Governors of Washington and Oregon are calling upon the FRA to halt Pacific Northwest oil trains.
By Roy L Hales
On June 1, 2016, the Governors of Washington, Oregon and California joined British Columbia’s Environment Minister and representatives from six West Coast cities, in the Borgia Room of San Francisco’s Westin St. Francis Hotel, to sign what history may show was a key milestone in the struggle to mount a concerted defence against the ravages of global temperature rise. The 2016 Pacific Coast Climate Leadership Action Plan has a strong emphasis on issues like ocean acidification; the integration of clean energy into the power grid; “support for efforts by the insurance industry and regulatory system to highlight the economic costs of climate change; and so-called “super pollutants” (also known as short-lived climate pollutants).” This sounds good, but do the Pacific Coast’s “Climate Leaders” mean business?
Continue reading Do The Pacific Coast’s Climate Leaders Mean Business?By Roy L Hales
It has been nine months since the Governments of California, Oregon, Washington and British Columbia embarked upon a shared initiative. In their joint press release, group spokesperson Governor Kate Brown explained “The West Coast Electric Fleets initiative leads the way in helping fleets scale up zero-emission vehicles to reach our goal that, by 2016, 10 percent of all new purchases are electric vehicles.” How is the West Coast Electric Fleets Initiative Doing?
Continue reading How is the West Coast Electric Fleets Initiative Doing?By Roy L Hales
The struggle has been ongoing for more than a decade. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) approved the first incarnation of this project in 2009 and few are surprised to hear they issued a Final Environmental Impact Statement today. The energy company Veresen’s President and CEO, Don Althoff, calls this “a significant regulatory milestone,” which came about after working “closely with federal, state and local regulatory agencies and with local communities over the past three years.” Forrest English, of Rogue Riverkeeper, said “FERC has never turned down a new LNG terminal.” The fight over Jordan Cove LNG will continue.
Continue reading The Fight Over Jordan Cove LNG Will ContinueBy Roy L Hales
The situation in California is intensifying. More than half of Oregon is now officially in extreme drought conditions. Washington’s snowpack has disappeared and more than a quarter of the state’s rivers are at record time lows. Though the emergency has not yet reached British Columbia, the province predicts “some regions will likely experience significant water supply shortages.” The drought shows us what Climate Change could bring to the West Coast.
Continue reading What Climate Change May Bring To The West Coast
