Port of Vancouver Wins Terminal Lawsuit

By Mark Edward Nero

A Superior Court Judge on Jan. 10 ruled against three environmental groups that have been trying to stop the Port of Vancouver, Washington from moving forward with a proposed 42-acre oil-handling terminal.

The three groups – Columbia Riverkeeper, the Northwest Environmental Defense Center and the Sierra Club – sued in October 2013 to stop the project, maintaining that its 10-year, $45 million lease was approved before an environmental study had been conducted.

Judge David Gregerson dismissed the claim, but also said the environmental groups are still allowed to continue pursuing a separate complaint, which alleges that the port violated the Washington state open meetings laws by conducting a “secret” meeting to discuss the lease last July 22.

Gregerson’s decision against the environmental groups is eligible to be appealed, but on the day of the ruling, Columbia Riverkeeper Executive Director Brett VandenHeuvel would not comment on whether the groups would appeal the decision. The port’s legal representative, however, said Vancouver intends to adhere to the stipulation regarding the July 22 executive session conducted by the Commission.

“We understand the court’s desire to allow the plaintiffs time to pursue limited additional evidence,” port attorney Lawson Fite of the Markowitz, Herbold, Glade & Mehlhaf firm, said. “We intend to work with the plaintiffs to provide the necessary information in an efficient manner.”

The project in question is a joint proposal by petroleum products company Tesoro Corp. and supply chain solutions business Savage Companies, a to develop and operate a new 120,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) crude-by-rail unloading and marine loading facility at the Port of Vancouver.

The Tesoro-Savage joint venture would own the crude unloading and marine loading facilities and enter into a land lease agreement with the port for an initial 10-year period. Savage would oversee and manage the design, construction and operation of the facility on the joint venture’s behalf.

The deal, which was approved by the Port of Vancouver Board of Commissioners last October, is still subject to approval by state regulatory agencies.

“The port will continue to work collaboratively with the environmental community and other stakeholders as the Tesoro-Savage project is reviewed,” port Executive Director Todd Coleman said in a statement.

Port of Stockton to Launch Barge Service

The Port of Stockton is starting a barge service to move containers along the Sacramento River that are too heavy for highway transit. The project is due to launch in in February 2012.

The M-580 Marine Highway, as the port is calling it, would travel between the port and Oakland. It is so named because it would be parallel to Interstate 580, the corridor that many truckers use to transport goods to and from the ports.

The barge service could potentially save shippers money in transport costs, since it would allow containers to be loaded in excess of California’s highway weight limit of 22 metric tons.

Funding for the project comes partially from the U.S. Department of Transportation. In February 2010, the port received a $13 million federal grant to buy two 140-ton mobile harbor cranes and to make needed infrastructure improvements to support the container-on-barge project.

The port has already purchased two cranes and two barges for the project; the cranes are scheduled for January delivery and the barges are scheduled to undergo modifications in early 2012 to enable them to handle cargo containers.

The port has hired Savage Companies, a Salt Lake City-based supply chain solutions business, to provide various support functions, including management, logistics, marketing and operating services. Savage says it has already begun marketing the barge service to potential customers.

The port says it also expects the route to reduce freeway traffic and help improve regional air quality. It’s estimated that about 1,600 containers per day move between the Stockton and Oakland ports along I-580, which is one of the state’s most congested freeways.