Port of Vancouver commissioners
are looking for input at a hearing Tuesday about how to move forward with
the nation’s largest oil-by-rail terminal.
The Port wants to hear from the public about how to proceed
with a proposed lease amendment from the backers of the Vancouver
Energy Project.
The hearing will be held at Clark
College. It’s expected to last about 12 hours.
“We know that there’s a lot of interest on all sides of the
Vancouver Energy Project,” said Abbi Russell, a spokeswoman with the port.
“We believe there will be a lot of folks who want to come and share their
comments, we hope that they will.”
The oil terminal is a joint-venture between Tesoro Corporation,
an oil company, and Savage Industries, a logistics firm.
Last week, the companies proposed
an amendment to the lease that would – among other things — allow two extra
years to get state permits. The port staff recommends that commissioners vote
against the proposed changes.
It’s taking the project longer than expected to get through
Washington state’s permitting process.
Under the current lease, the companies have until August to get
permits. If they don’t, either entity can get out of the leas