Washington Demands Coal Exporter Cut Carbon Footprint in Half

 

 

May 4, 2016 - The Washington Department of Ecology on Friday demanded a company proposing to export coal submit a plan to sharply shrink the project’s expected carbon footprint, raising questions about the plan’s chances of winning approval from Gov. Jay Inslee’s administration.

Ecology released a long-awaited study on the environmental impacts of building a coal-export terminal in Longview along the Lower Columbia River.

Millennium Bulk Terminals, a partnership of two coal companies, proposes to export up to 44 million metric tons a year to Asia.

The Washington Farm Bureau has been among the project’s strongest advocates, arguing that expanding the state’s port and rail facilities will benefit agricultural exports.

DOE’s study found BNSF Railway and Union Pacific will have to make investments to accommodate 1.3-mile long trains hauling coal through Washington from Montana, Wyoming, Utah and Colorado.

DOE found little reason to be concerned about coal dust or vessel traffic, but was alarmed about greenhouse gases.

U.S. coal exports would drive down the price of coal in Asia, encouraging more consumption and increasing global carbon output, according to the report.

If operating at full capacity, the terminal would increase the world’s greenhouse gas emissions by the equivalent of 672,100 passenger cars, according to the study.

DOE demanded Millennium submit a plan to cut the net increase by 50 percent.

DOE called its 50 percent mandate “reasonable and appropriate” based on state laws regarding emission standards for new power plants and overall carbon-reduction goals.

Failing to present a satisfactory carbon-reduction plan won’t necessarily kill the project, but it will be significant, DOE spokeswoman

Lisa Copeland said.

Millennium needs 20 permits from eight different local, state and federal agencies, including six from DOE, which falls under Inslee’s authority. Inslee has made climate change his signature issue.

As a start to slashing carbon output, DOE suggested the company enforce a “no-idling” policy for trains and ships, and school locomotive engineers and heavy equipment operators in “fuel efficiency.”

The company also could buy electric vehicles for its fleet, install charging stations for employees with electric vehicles, and encourage workers to carpool, according to DOE.

Millennium did not respond to a request for comment on whether the company could come up with a plan to halve greenhouse gases.

The company issued a brief statement from CEO

 

Bill Chapman. “This major milestone moves us one step closer to creating family-wage jobs in Longview, while meeting Washington’s strict environmental standards,” he said.

Todd Myers, environmental policy analyst for the conservative-leaning Washington Policy Center, questioned DOE’s basis for requiring Millennium to cut projected emissions by half.

“A regulator is supposed to be clear and objective. In this case, the regulation is far from clear and far from being an objective standard and has become an arbitrary tool,” he said.

Myers said DOE wrongly assumes Asia won’t buy coal from other countries if U.S. coal isn’t available. He said buying carbon credits would be a lot more cost-effective than purchasing electric vehicles.

“Ecology’s suggestions are probably the most expensive things that you can do and do almost nothing for the environment,” he said.

The Washington Farm Bureau will continue to voice support for Millennium, the organization’s CEO,

 

John Stuhlmiller, said in a written statement.

“Farmers and growers understand the more opportunity Washington has to export, the greater the willingness there will be to invest in the infrastructure to support these exports,” he said.

Utah-based Lighthouse Resources Inc. and Missouri-based Arch Coal own Millennium. The company’s website said Friday that it began mining for permits four years, two months and 17 days ago.

DOE will take comments until June 13 on the study that came out Friday. The department is expected to issue a final environmental impact statement next year. DOE says it already has received 217,500 comments, many of them from people concerned about climate change.

Business and labor groups have rallied behind Millennium, saying they’re frustrated by the lengthy review.

DOE’s unprecedented demand for Millennium to mitigate carbon emissions that occur elsewhere in the world should terrify any manufacturer or shipper looking to expand, said

 

Kathryn Stenger, spokeswoman for the private trade organization Alliance for Northwest Jobs and Exports.