Vancouver oil terminal necessary to state, U.S. energy needs

By Willy Myers and Joe Wilson

The Mosier, Oregon, train derailment is not, as some opponents argue, a reason to reject smart investments in our regional energy infrastructure.

Yes, every effort should be made to repair the damage caused by the spill, allow Mosier residents to return to their normal lives, determine what happened, and identify lessons that can be applied to enhance the safety of future train shipments. However, we must also keep the big picture in mind.

Petroleum is a lot more than the gas we pump into our cars. Petroleum products fuel the jets we fly, the farms that grow our food and the trucks that deliver the products we buy. They fuel industrial processes and heat our homes, businesses, schools and hospitals. Our entire economy and way of life directly depend on reliable and cost-effective fuel sources. Even as we pursue alternative energy strategies, petroleum products will remain crucially important for years to come.

That’s why business and labor organizations from around the state have formed the Washington Coalition for Energy Independence to support Vancouver Energy, a proposed oil terminal that would be located on industrial property at the Port of Vancouver in Washington state. It would accept crude oil from North American sources and ship it to West Coast refineries, including ones here in Washington, to create fuels and other products for domestic consumption.

The project is vitally important to our entire state. It would increase our energy independence by reducing reliance on crude oil from potentially unstable foreign sources, including Iraq, Russia, Venezuela and other countries. It’s estimated that Vancouver Energy could reduce foreign petroleum imports to the West Coast by up to 30 percent.

Beyond enhanced energy independence, the project would generate thousands of new jobs, billions in economic activity and millions in additional tax revenue to fund education, health care, transportation and other valuable public services here in Washington.

Vancouver Energy will also make it more cost-effective for Western refineries to utilize crude oil from the Bakken reserve, which is up to 30 percent less carbon-intensive than crude from other sources. This translates into significantly fewer carbon emissions: the equivalent of taking 250,000 cars off Western roads.

It’s also important for the future of our state to be able to build major projects like this. They create jobs, generate new revenues for public services and support important public policy goals, such as lowering carbon emissions and increasing energy independence.

Projects like Vancouver Energy also help diversify our employment base. Washington is fortunate to have thriving technology, global health and international trade sectors. But a strong economy still must provide family-wage job opportunities for skilled tradespeople and other blue-collar workers.

Transporting crude oil by rail — just like barges, trucks and pipelines — presents risks that can’t completely be eliminated. But they can be minimized, and Vancouver Energy is committed to doing that. They will only use rail cars that not only go far beyond the type on the Mosier train, but also exceed new Department of Transportation safety standards announced last year. They will support enhancements to Washington’s already stringent regulations to reduce the risk of spills, and will help prepare local emergency management teams to improve the effectiveness of their response if any incidents occur.

As the state reviews Vancouver Energy, its decisions should be based on facts. Emotional voices pursuing a broader anti-petroleum agenda may point to the Mosier incident or erroneously argue that it will increase consumption.

But the fact remains that Vancouver Energy is a prudent investment that will spur important economic development while making our country stronger and more secure.

Willy Myers is executive secretary-treasurer of the Columbia Pacific Building and Construction Trades Council. Joe Wilson is vice president of Pederson Brothers, a Bellingham-based industrial metal fabrication and machining company. Both are members of the Washington Coalition for Energy Independence.