On August 27 the City of Portland put the brakes on Zenith Energy's oil-by-rail storage and transfer facility in NW Portland by denying a Land Use Compatibility Statement (LUCS) for the facility. After relentless pressure from Portland residents, community organizations, and many elected officials the city used its clout to rule that Zenith's plans are inconsistent with the City’s land use rules. DEQ cannot issue a clean air permit for the facility without the LUCS, and Zenith cannot operate without that permit.
Now that DEQ has stood up to oil, it's time to put more pressure on the agency to stand up to fracked gas as well. On this episode of Locus Focus we celebrate the Zenith victory and then confront the next challenge of ensuring that Oregon's Climate Protection Program does not give fracked gas a pas, as we talk with Erin Saylor, staff attorney with Columbia Riverkeeper and Molly Tack-Hooper with Earth Justice.
Find out more about Oregon's Climate Protection Program and how you can provide comments to make it actually protect the climate:
Petition Page & Comment Writing Guide
DEQ's webpage with the draft rules / hearing information
- KBOO