The Montesano City Council says it doesn’t want oil trains running through the city and approved a resolution condemning the possible construction of three oil storage facilities at the Port of Grays Harbor.
The resolution requests that various governing bodies rescind and deny future permits for potential oil export facilities. It passed Tuesday by a vote of 6-1, with Councilwoman Pam McElliott the only vote in opposition.
The resolution follows the style of one approved by the Aberdeen City Council recently and was put on the agenda at the request of Councilwoman Marisa Salzer. The resolution requests that “the commissioners of the Port of Grays Harbor reconsider their proposal to build three marine terminals for the transfer of Bakken, tar sands and other crude oil which will result in this oil being transported on DOT 111 rail cars known to be unsafe through our urban centers.”
Members of the public packed the council chambers, with several citizens standing in the hallway outside the chamber just to be able to hear the council discussion.
Dan Wood, a former county commissioner who lives in Montesano, began the comment period by sharing that the damage done by oil train explosions in several instances had affected an area that would include vital parts of the local communities on Grays Harbor.
“The blast zone is a half mile in each direction of the tracks,” Wood said. “If you go one half mile up from the tracks in various parts of Montesano you will take in Beacon Elementary, you will go up main street north of the courthouse, you will go beyond the fire department … eight schools in Grays Harbor County in East County are within a half mile of those tracks.”
McElliott said she knew she would be the lone council member in support of the crude transport, but that she felt the economic impact was too great to not support the crude terminals.
“I’m not against crude by rail,” McElliott said. “I think we are trying to stop commerce and I hate to see that. Does the railroad need to do some updates? Absolutely. We don’t know that they are not going to do them.”
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