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Were Fossil Fuel Exports the Big Loser in BC’s Election?
BC residents took to the polls Tuesday to elect a new Parliament—and for fossil fuel exports a lot rode on the electoral outcome. A win by the right-of-center BC Liberal Party could have spelled doom for BC coal exports, particularly from US companies shipping their wares through southern BC. Liberal leader Christy Clark had taken an unexpectedly strong stand against coal shipments to overseas power plants: she first sent a...Read more » -
Listen In: BC’s LNG Ambitions
On Tuesday, Sightline senior research associate Tarika Powell joined KBAI’s Joe Teehan to discuss her latest report detailing the 20 liquefied natural gas projects proposed for the shores of British Columbia. The projects would stretch from the Salish Sea in the south to Stewart, BC, in the north, with major hubs at Kitimat and Prince Rupert. The province’s LNG ambitions could make it the world’s largest LNG exporter.* Listen in...Read more » -
BC’s ‘Wild West of Political Cash’ Fuels a Fossil Fuel Frenzy
“The wild west of Canadian political cash.” That’s what the New York Times called British Columbia in a January 2017 investigation into the province’s extremely permissive rules governing campaign donations. Now, a new report by a trio of researchers at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA) shines a light on fossil fuel political spending in BC. Unusual for any modern democracy, the province actually has no limit on contributions...Read more » -
Did Trump Just Kill a Northwest Oil-By-Rail Project?
The deeply controversial Dakota Access Pipeline, also known as DAPL, got another boost last week after lawmakers claimed that the Secretary of the Army had ordered the Army Corps of Engineers to “proceed with the easement needed to complete [it].” The 470,000 barrel per day pipeline, which would connect North Dakota oil fields with Midwestern oil hubs, isn’t yet a done deal. The Corps has not yet granted the pipeline’s final easement,...Read more » -
Inclusionary Zoning: The Most Promising—or Counter-productive—of All Housing Policies
Imagine two towns, both committed to helping their low-income residents but short on funding for social services. Both decide to require retailers to sell 5 or 10 percent of their wares at steeply discounted prices to families who qualify for benefits: milk, jeans, refrigerators, whatever. But they do it two different ways. The first town flat-out forces stores to do it, giving them nothing back in exchange. The place gets...Read more » -
“Our Victories are Preventing Decades of Pollution”
Editor’s Note August 2016: Last week during the Lummi Totem Pole Journey stop in Seattle, Sightline senior researcher Tarika Powell had the privilege of speaking alongside leaders from the Lummi Nation, Quinault Nation, White Swan Dakotas, and more, about the fight against coal, oil, and gas infrastructure in the Northwest. The ceremony brought together 300 people and strengthened connections between tribes, people of faith, civic leaders, and activists. Due to the requests from attendees, we are publishing...Read more » -
Green PR Firm Secretly Working for Oil and Petrochemical Industry
Consulting firm EnviroIssues is a longstanding fixture of the Northwest’s sustainability community. Known mostly for its work with local governments, the company is generally well respected and considered “a white hat” in a field liberally populated with unscrupulous characters. Of themselves, EnviroIssues says: “Our names says it all—we help make the natural and built communities where we live, work, and play better places by tackling some of the thorniest public...Read more » -
Tacoma’s Proposed LNG Plant Raises Safety Concerns
Editor’s note: The graphic “Purpose of Proposed Tacoma LNG Facility” was updated 11/22/2017 to most accurately reflect language of source material. Puget Sound Energy (PSE), a regional utility, plans to build a multifarious liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Tacoma. The plant won the second of two leases the Tacoma Port Commission recently signed with companies promising to bring “clean energy” projects to the city. The other, now cancelled, was for a...Read more » -
Two Northwest Oil Train Projects Flop
Oil trains in the railyards w shipping containers, Everett, WA. by Paul K. Anderson (Used with permission)
In the first month of 2016, a pair of fledgling oil-by-rail projects abruptly collapsed in Oregon and Washington. One on the Columbia River, which had been operating since 2012, abruptly laid off more than half its workforce as it pivoted away from crude. The other, a proposal on the Pacific Coast that was still seeking permits, suddenly abandoned its intentions of handling oil. The strange history of these projects serves...Read more » -
Your Christmas Tree’s Carbon Footprint
Editor’s Note December 2022: Thinking about buying a Christmas tree? We’re bringing back this popular post weighing in on the great debate: pine vs. plastic, which tree is the better option for the planet? And if you decide to go for the ultimate sustainable option this year, check out our ten DIY trees that reuse and recycle. Find audio versions of Sightline articles on any of your favorite podcast platforms, including...Read more »