FROM EXTRACTION TO EXPORT: DIRTY LIES ABOUT CLEAN COAL

by Lindsay Taylor

Mining, shipping, and burning the dirtiest, most carbon-intensive fossil fuel on the planet continues to wreak havoc on the health of communities throughout Appalachia. Coal may be cheap, but the true cost is the price we end up paying by sacrificing our health, our environment, and our future.

One of America's most heartbreaking environmental and human rights tragedies, mountaintop removal for coal mining is destroying Appalachia's rich culture and heritage, as well as the beautiful, ancient mountains and diverse forests the region is known for. Although there are no plans to start mining coal again in Whatcom County, the legacy left by the Gateway Pacific Terminal, what would be North America's largest coal export facility, could be very similar here in the Pacific Northwest.

Join Appalachian Voices and RE Sources for Sustainable Communities on Friday, April 20th at 7pm in the YWCA Ballroom (located at 1026 N. Forest St. in Bellingham) for a powerful and compelling presentation on the impacts of mountaintop removal coal mining in Appalachia and the proposed coal export facilities here in the Pacific Northwest. Meet the people who are fighting to protect their homes, their families, and the mountains themselves from the irreversible destruction on the East Coast of our country and your local advocates who are working hard to prevent the West Coast from becoming a high volume coal corridor.

At the heart of this special event is the stunning Appalachian Treasures slide show, featuring photos of Appalachia and mining sites, voice recordings from coalfield residents, and traditional Appalachian music. An Appalachian coalfield resident will speak about daily life in the shadow of the mines, where residents are forced to contend with the destruction of water supplies, continual dynamite blasting that damages homes and wells and creates choking dust and the fear of fatal, catastrophic floods with every rainfall. Learn how you can help your neighbors in Appalachia end mountaintop removal and how to get involved in stopping coal export from Whatcom County.

This event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided.

For more information on this event, visit Re-Sources.org or call (360) 733-8307. For more information about mountaintop removal, visit AppVoices.org. For more information on the Power Past Coal campaign, visit PowerPastCoal.org

The North Sound Baykeeper Team is charged with protecting and enhancing the marine and nearshore habitats of the northern Puget Sound region. The Baykeeper is a program of RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting sustainable communities through recycling, education, advocacy, and the conservation of natural resources.

Coal Terminal Update: Whose Process Is This?

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

by Jean Melious (photo by Paul Anderson)

As you've probably heard by now, there was a spillover crowd at Bellingham High School tonight for the Gateway Pacific Coal Terminal "pre-scoping" forum, put on by some very nervous lead agencies.

The police presence was quite noticeable, and the evening kicked off with stern warnings of expulsion for bad behavior. As it turns out, I was probably the worst-behaved person there, because I was bored to tears during the first hour and kept texting friends in order to keep awake. I'm glad that the police didn't cite me for rudeness.

Everybody else listened politely and quietly. I hope that they learned something. I use similar slides when I teach Environmental Impact Assessment, and I'm not convinced that they do any good at all. But more is at stake here, and adult learners predominated, so here's hoping that the information made sense.

The second hour allowed members of the audience to ask questions of a panel of agency personnel, including representatives of the County, the Department of Ecology, the Attorney General's office, and the Army Corps of Engineers. Randel Perry, representing the Army Corps, might need some training in bureaucratic double-speak, because he actually answered the questions that people asked him. The crowd didn't always like the answers, but Randel was knowledgeable and straightforward. Hooah to the Corps. Whatcom County's Tyler Schroeder got most of the questions and did his best to answer. When he didn't know something, he didn't pretend.

Some of the others were a little less accustomed to dealing with the public. That's a symptom, perhaps, of sitting around a table behind closed doors with the MAP team for the past two years. You come out into the daylight, blinking, and there's a room full of 800 just plain folks.

The questions were excellent. I wish that I could have answered one of them. My answer would have been different.

Somebody asked if the public comment period could be longer than 60 days, for both the scoping period and for review of the draft Environmental Impact Statement. The answer, boiled down to its essentials, was "no." (The actual answer didn't actually include the word "no" and took about 500 more words, but that was the gist of things.)

But guess what? The real answer is "yes."

The agencies can (and often do, at least under NEPA) provide more public review time. For a project of this magnitude, a 60-day scoping period is pretty minimal, and allowing only 60 days to review a draft Environmental Impact Statement that is projected to take two years to prepare would be crazy.

So why are the agencies saying that they won't provide more time?

Possibly because the applicant has to agree to a scoping period of longer than 30 days under SEPA (see WAC 197-11-410(4)), and perhaps the applicant doesn't want to agree to more than 60 days.

Applicants always want the shortest possible review periods. That way, people have less time to review. And maybe to criticize, or find problems, or raise difficult issues, or think of alternatives.

But let's think about this.

• The applicant and the agencies have been meeting for two years. Two years to understand and process information relating to the project and its necessary permits.
• The applicant submitted an incomplete application to Whatcom County and got extensions.

Isn't it a little bit lopsided for the agencies to meet in private for two years with the applicant, to give the applicant all the extensions that it wants, and then to turn to the public that wants more than 60 days to comment on the scope of this enormous project and say:

"MORE? You want MORE?"

The lead agencies could, quite reasonably, tell the applicant that more time is needed for public and agency review in order to prepare an adequate environmental impact statement. The applicant could put its foot down and say "no," of course, but it would do so on the understanding that the lead agencies did not believe that enough time was provided to prepare an adequate document. And the applicant would understand that, if the agencies don't believe that the document is adequate, they are under no obligation to approve the project.

As a result, the wise applicant will usually agree to reasonable extensions of time.

So why don't the agencies request a little more time for the public to have a say?

Don't forget, the reason that we have a MAP team is to expedite the process. For the applicant.

RE Sources Rallies for a Fair Environmental Impact Assessment.

by Crina Hoyer

Join us and your community, next Tuesday, March 20^th 5-6pm at Bellingham High School.

Tuesday, March 20th is a big day. It’s the first opportunity that the public will have to hear directly from the agencies responsible for determining the environmental impacts of the Gateway Pacific Terminal i.e. the coal port. Whatcom County representatives and the WA State Department of Ecology are hosting an Information Meeting on Environmental Review Process at the Bellingham High School at 6pm. March 20th is also a perfect opportunity for a community who opposes the coal terminal to send a clear message to decision-makers that we are still paying attention.

To clarify, the 6pm meeting is not part of the official permitting process as far as we can tell, but we’re happy that the County and Department of Ecology are hosting it. The purpose of their meeting is not to collect any official comments or hear from concerned citizens (that will happen later in the spring). The purpose is to familiarize people with the upcoming environmental review process that will likely start in a few months. But we can’t pass up any opportunity to communicate our concerns, therefore we need you and all of your friends to show up with signs, banners and noisemakers and help us show our permitting agencies that there are a lot of us who will be carefully scrutinizing this permitting and EIS process. Click here for more info on the EIS process and what will be discussed at the community meeting.

Join RE Sources and others at Bellingham High School at 5:00pm on Tuesday, March 20th for a pre-meeting rally. We want to turn out a thousand people, rain or shine, to help us demand a comprehensive environmental impact assessment.

For those of you who might need a little background info before you’re willing to storm the high school (written with tongue-in-cheek, of course), check-out these great articles from last week:

“It's great for the coal cabal! For us, not so much.” by James Wells Written for the Daily Kos, this article begins with a great lead paragraph:

When big carbon comes to town, the resulting swath of destruction is economic as well as environmental. This should not be too much of a surprise for anybody who has been paying attention.

Great information can be found on Jean Melious’ blog. In her most recent post titled, “Coal Port News: A 2% Solution to Heavy Rail Traffic and At-Grade Railroad Crossings,” Jean discusses a recent conference held in Billings, Montana that focused on examining the impacts of coal train traffic on Billings’ downtown. Clearly this is a topic that should raise some concern in Bellingham.

Third, you might want to pull-up Floyd McKay’s recent article called, “Study questions coal's value to Bellingham,” written for Crosscut.com. As always, Floyd does a great job digging deep into the issue. He begins by writing:

As an environmental review approaches, opponents and supporters of exporting coal to China are angling to shape the perception of how a proposed facility will affect Bellingham and even cities like Seattle and Edmonds.

Grab your friends and neighbors and join RE Sources at our community rally for a fair environmental impact assessment at 5:00pm at Bellingham High School. See you next Tuesday!

Money doesn’t grow on trees, but it may sprout in the least expected places.

By Hannah Coughlin

Eat More Nutritiously
with Lower Grocery Bills.

With the economic changes in 2011 came a larger-than-expected increase in food prices (4.8% for home-consumers), leaving many families looking for solutions to reducing food bills while eating nutritious, organic foods. As a result, many households have turned to edible gardening as a way to offset costs. In fact, studies conducted by W. Atlee Burpee Co show that the return on investment for home-grown produce is better than 1 to 25. That’s $25 worth of produce for every $1 you sink into the ground! For families that go even further and freeze, can, or dry their harvest, the return climbs even higher.

Give them an inch, they’ll grow a pound. According to the National Gardening Association, one square foot of garden space can provide a half-pound of fresh vegetables (and that’s a conservative estimate). At current market prices for organic produce, even a small patio container garden can save you $100 in groceries.

There’s a first for everything. It’s understandable to be intimidated by the process of planting your first food garden, especially if you believe your restricted schedule, spatial limitations, or “brown thumb” have sealed your fate. Be encouraged. Plants want to grow – even in the Pacific Northwest. If you feel overwhelmed, start your first garden in a pot (there are plenty of container veggies and herbs to choose from). Half-a-dozen pots or one 3x3’ plot is a good start for beginners and will provide a satisfying harvest while you learn.

Help is available. Use it. There are countless resources just within Whatcom, Skagit and Island Counties to help you become a confident and successful food gardener. For hands-on workshops to lead you through the process step-by-step, consider attending The Savvy Urban Gardener workshop series above The RE Store March 6^th – April 7^th. You can also participate in monthly in-the-garden classes and work parties at The RE Patch community garden, which are always open to the public. For further resources of gardening assistance in your area, contact Hannah.

Top Ten Reasons why you should start an edible garden this year.
1. You can’t get more local than your backyard
2. A unique sense of empowerment and self-sufficiency
3. Peace of mind from knowing what’s in your food and where it came from
4. Higher nutrient levels in your food
5. Supplementing your household food supply and saving grocery money
6. The joy of dining on a meal of produce you grew
7. An opportunity to teach your kids (or roommates) where food comes from.
8. The ability to eat rare and expensive vegetable varieties (like heirloom tomatoes!)
9. Stress reduction from working with plants and soil.
10. A thinner waistline (you will inevitably eat more fruits and vegetables if you grow them)

As international horticulturist and instructor, Derek Duffy, puts it, “When you begin to see the life that springs up from a seedling, you will never forget it. You will naturally be inclined to nurture it to fruition. Like parenting, it’s equally rewarding and forever new.”

Moving in the Same Direction

I ride my bike to work nearly every day. Each morning I pack my work clothes in my panniers, zip-up my reflective jacket, strap on my helmet and head out the door. Every day it’s pretty much the same: Same route, same time of day and same fellow bike commuters on the road.

It’s pretty cool to see the same people every morning, heading year-after-year to their jobs just like me. It’s even cooler now that we recognize each other. It used to be that I’d give these familiar folks a head nod as I rode by. Then I graduated to the two-finger wave and an occasional ring of the bell. Now, nearly 14-years into this familiar routine, I raise myself off of my handlebars, give a full-on wave and holler “good morning!” I’ve also taken to saying “’mornin’” to the folks standing at the bus stops, walking their dogs, and jogging past.

The funny thing is that I don’t know their names, I don’t know where they’re going, but I know one thing: We’re all moving from one place to another, powered by our own energy, experiencing this great community together. I don’t know much about these people. I wouldn’t recognize them without their familiar bike-gear or rain coats or crazy dogs on leash, but I really like them nonetheless. I like them because I get the sense that we share a common value and are willing to work hard to achieve it.

As I rode my bike to work today, I thought a lot about this notion and how it translates to RE Sources. I think of you and our other supporters a lot like I think about those folks on the trail: I don’t always know your names, I don’t know if I’d recognize you without your proverbial rain coat on…but I know you share the same values that we do. You value clean air, clean water, clean energy, resource conservation, public participation, science-based decisions, and you value the laws that protect us from environmental degradation.

I wish I could give each one of you a personal “Good Morning!” just like I share with my fellow commuters. To you I would add “thank you for your support!” Honestly, I thank each and every one of you for sticking with us as we grow and learn, helping us succeed, talking about our issues with your friends, making donations to support our work, writing letters to your elected officials, attending our events, “liking” us on Facebook, visiting our website, taking one of our classes and shopping at The RE Store.

Like the many people I see on my commute, I may not know your name, but I feel your support. I am thankful that you are moving in the same direction with the same set of values that we have at RE Sources.

Thank you.

Crina Hoyer

Interim Executive Director

RE Sources Bids Farewell to Bob Ferris

Today RE Sources bids farewell to Executive Director, Bob Ferris, who has chosen to leave the organization and pursue other opportunities. We will miss Bob, and wish him the very best in his future pursuits.

Effective this month, on an interim basis, Crina Hoyer will assume organization-wide management and leadership responsibilities.

I am confident in RE Sources' talented staff and their ability to continue perform at the highest levels during this transition. I look forward to continuing to support their work and providing the organization with a stable foundation for the future. Please feel free to contact Crina Hoyer (CrinaH (at) RE-Sources.org) if you have any questions."

Warmly,
Ken Bronstein
President, RE Sources' Board of Directors

Salvaged Wood: Turning Waste to Wonder

I love working at a place that excites me.  And just this morning on my walk around The RE Store I spied something that did just that—we are now carrying a new line of wood.  Before you start thinking that I am really setting my sights way too low—this is actually locally salvaged wood that is either reused and re-milled or gleaned from what is left over from past timber harvests. 

Our first shipments in the Bellingham Store includes:

Clear and character grade old growth fir flooring

T&G old growth Cedar and Fir paneling in many sizes

Door jamb packages

T&G Birch, Alder, and Maple flooring

Old growth Fir and Cedar finished dimension trim lumber

Old growth cedar and fir quarter round and cove molding

T&G 2x6 old growth fir “car decking”

Products are also flowing into our Seattle store inventory.

The wood comes to us via a relationship with Local Source Forest Products, Inc. and their partners mainly in Whatcom and Skagit Counties.  And it excites me for a number of reasons.  First serving as a retail outlet for a local company addresses our sustainability mission on a number of different levels.  We love local businesses and are happy to help where we can.  Local Sources’ actions also epitomize the types of necessary efficiencies and opportunities that need to be pursued in order to reduce our impact on the planet while at the same time taking steps to support human life.  This is job creation from waste.  This is job creation without a high ecological impact.  This is job creation we can embrace. 

Moreover this set of products—reused and gleaned flooring, molding, and dimension lumber—is simply so The RE Store.  Local Source Forest Products, Inc. and The RE Store are riffing on one of our most favorite themes: Turning waste into wonder. In my mind these products are a “treefer”:

They sustain local businesses;

Reduce waste while saving trees; and

Create jobs for hardworking and creative individuals.

This is all great as our projects move inside.

Bob Ferris

Executive Director