The City Club Debate

Last Thursday, the day after the City Club debate over the plan to build a rail-head depot at Cherry Point to load coal on big ships to China, the Mariners were playing in Detroit and the color girl strayed away from the ball park to visit the Ford museum. First she showed viewers the first passenger train, a fragile little thing; then she showed us a giant locomotive that by itself could pull a mile-long train of cars full of coal. Holy smoke!

That evening on the PBS News Hour it was BNSF's turn for an extended non-commercial showing the “train that connects us all” traveling through beautiful fields with cows running along side and majestic wind turbines overhead. How romantic!

Waiting in line to get into Northwood Hall for the debate we had the good fortune to stand behind Gary Anderson, a photographer who had spent three and a half hours touring the coal dock at Tsawwassen. Devastating pictures are on his site: www.chuckanutconservancy.blogspot.com.

Inside the spacious hall we found that City Club members who paid $11 for an okeh lunch sat well-spaced at round tables with the opportunity to ask questions. As “guests” we paid $16 to sit close together at small tables. We were hoping to sit with labor union members, cheering advocates for the Gateway Pacific Terminal to be built at Cherry Point, but all at our table were opposed. The hall was packed. The program chairman acknowledged he was reluctant to announce a number because it might exceed listed capacity

The debate was between Promise and Concern. When Concern's leader Bob Ferris described the health menace, with specific examples, related to coal transportation, the Promise team of Craig Cole and Bob Watters, an executive of SSA Marine the company that wants to build the terminal said Cherry Point would be different. “Tsawwassen is like a 70s gas guzzler, Gateway Pacific will be Prius,” said Mr. Watters. Although SSA Marine operates terminals around the world the Promise team had no examples of where they operate cleanly.

Mr. Cole compared Mr. Ferris to Glenn Beck crying that he is tired of “fear mongering over coal dust.” City Club is “nonpartisian” – applause is discourage. But this time Mr. Coal was booed. (See Bob Ferris' profile on Linkedin – he has a distinguished career as a leader in environmental protection.) Belying his confidence, Mr. Cole said he went to the Powder Basin in Montana where the coal is mined and learned that three “protocols” are being tested but the railroad for the best way to limit coal dust.

In answer to questions – some from the audience were harsh – the Confidence team promised problems would be solved in the permitting process. They seem to believe they can manage those who control that process, including the Whatcom County Council.

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