Postpone the LNG hearing

My letter to The Daily Astorian: Sensible or a blatant delay tactic? Whatchathink?

Friday, June 01, 2007

Clatsop County's administration and the commissioners that represent this county's citizens deserve praise for their professional and transparent handling of the Bradwood liquefied natural gas land use application. They've posted relevant documents on the county Web site, resisted taking sides, and, until now have been reluctant to rush the process.

Unfortunately, Clatsop County's apparent commitment to an open public process is under pressure. On May 17, the county issued a press release announcing that its planning commission would hold public hearings on the proposed Bradwood LNG import terminal on July 10.

Five days later, another press release appeared which listed the firms the county had under consideration to perform an independent public safety assessment of the project and deliver findings and recommendations by July 31.

How can the public be expected to participate in this process in an informed manner if vital safety information is not available until 21 days after the public hearing?

The county should postpone any hearing on this matter until the public, and the planning commissioners, have adequate time to review the safety assessment. Information from independent experts on the environmental, economic and safety aspects of the proposal should also be distributed in advance of any hearings. This is clearly reasonable.

Clatsop County's planning decision is about all that remains of local control over the siting of this type of fossil fuel infrastructure.

I'm amazed that an independent economic assessment is not yet under way. The county should insist that the applicant, NorthernStar, pay for such a study. There is honest disagreement about this project's benefits versus costs to Clatsop County. If we would see a net loss in dollars and jobs, shouldn't the planners and the public be aware of this information, from an unbiased source, prior to making far-reaching decisions?

There is no doubt that NorthernStar wants to rush this through. But I believe that our county government can resist the developer's demands. With our economy, our security and the quality of our lives at stake, well-informed and thoughtful deliberation is in order.

Peter Huhtala
Astoria