Yesterday afternoon, the most populous and economically dynamic county in Washington stood up to coal exports in a big way.
The King County Council issued a strongly-worded resolution taking direct aim at coal. The official statement expresses deep concern about coal export terminal proposals and calls for a broad review of the impacts on Washington and beyond. It calls on the federal government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and review leasing practices in the Powder River Basin. The resolution is, I believe, one of the strongest anti-coal statements yet seen from a local government in the Northwest.
Remarkably, the motion passed unanimously. Although the council is nominally nonpartisan, four of the nine members are Republican-aligned (of whom three were in attendance).
Conservative council member Reagan Dunn was successful in amending the resolution, modestly reducing the force of the statement. Yet even as he did so, Dunn made a heartfelt statement that coal no longer has any place as a source of electrical power in the US, and he drew attention to the coal-derived air pollution he has witnessed firsthand abroad.
The resolution was authored by council member Larry Phillips who deserves much credit for prompting King County to adopt a leadership position on coal. His evident passion for climate action, along with his considerable persistence and that of his staff, were key to the resolution’s strength and broad bipartisan support.
The press release is here.
Fossil Fuel Threats
This is great news and a step in the right direction for the council. Now if we can get the council to take action against the dangerous DOT-111 oil cars that roll through Seattle.
John Newcomb
Are coal trains still heading to Centralia coal thermal power plant?
http://www.transalta.com/facilities/plants-operation/centralia
http://www.transalta.com/facilities/plants-operation/centralia
Eric de Place
Yes, although Centralia’s power production has declined rather dramatically in recent years.
Gudrun Murti
How many loaded coal trains currently pass through Seattle each week going north? Any statistics?
Do they mostly go during nighttime? Rumble wakes us up.
I find my car covered with black dust.
Have the number increased since one year back?
Eric de Place
We think that roughly 1 to 3 loaded trains passes by each day. We’re not certain about the timing of them.
I don’t believe that the number has increased in a significant way over the last year. Check out the yellow line on the second chart here for a bit more information: http://www.sightline.org/2014/01/02/recent-coal-export-trends-q3-2013/