City report raises concerns about increased coal exports at Fraser Surrey Docks

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      A report detailing a proposed expansion of coal-export capacity at Fraser Surrey Docks will go before Surrey city council on Monday (March 11).

      Released today (March 8), the document outlines a number of concerns about citizens' health and safety, the environment, and congestion caused by increases in rail traffic.

      Health concerns relate to the transport of coal via rail from excavation sites in the United States to the loading facility at Fraser Surrey Docks, which sits on the Fraser River between the Alex Fraser Bridge and the Pattullo Bridge.

      “Members of the community have raised concern with the potential for the coal on the trains to shed coal dust due to wind turbulence,” the report states. “Coal dust could have health, environmental and aesthetic impacts on the residents and properties located along the railway.”

      Trains transporting coal to Fraser Surrey Docks are expected to be 135 cars long and pass through Surrey approximately 320 times per year (with the port at an annual export capacity of four million tonnes).

      The report notes that for some neighbourhoods, rail traffic could increase by as much as 10 percent, cause traffic blockages, impede the movement of emergency vehicles, and create noise to an extent that it is a disturbance.

      It’s recommended that a copy of the report be forwarded to the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority and Fraser Surrey Docks, and that the concerns listed be addressed in the project application’s review process.

      The current proposal would increase the port’s capacity for exporting coal to four million tonnes per year. A second expansion to a capacity of eight million tonnes per year is being discussed for the long term, although that expansion would require a new application.

      Vancouver and White Rock councils are also scheduled to hear motions next week critical of the project.

      On January 23, 2013, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority approved a $200-million expansion of North Vancouver’s Neptune Bulk Terminals, roughly doubling that site’s export capacity of coal to 18.5 million tonnes per year.

      It’s estimated that these proposals, combined with existing capacities to export coal, will amount to 55 to 59 million tonnes per year, making Metro Vancouver the largest coal export hub on the continent.

      You can follow Travis Lupick on Twitter at twitter.com/tlupick.

      Comments

      4 Comments

      Denise Dufault

      Mar 8, 2013 at 2:36pm

      i will bet that when the dust settles, many years from now, that the privatization of our railroads and trains and the; was all done with this sorry idea in mind. expansion of Delta Port and the ramming through of the Treaty with Tswassen was all a precursor to implement this sordid idea. The B.C. liberal party, Cristy Clark et al have sold us down the river, and now they want to hasten the destruction of Planet Earth by exporting More coal through us. And not count it as part of our carbon emissions and tax it. Did you know when China burns that coal that the particles are carried by the trade winds and fall back on us as toxic rain? This is a bad idea, if I lived close by I would voice my opposition to this expansion and request transitioning our power and exports to benign renewable energies for a Greener future for the benefit of all, not just a few privateers.

      PJ

      Mar 9, 2013 at 8:00am

      Denise:You dont think there are other places to get coal from?.Either we supply them or someone else will.China is building 300 plus coal generating plants and we are going to stop them?the same with Europ ,they need the power as wind power is not a constant and not enough for the country.Mony has to be made for all the benefits of BC residence.

      Pete

      Mar 9, 2013 at 3:32pm

      Tradeing is income for Canada,whether its oil,coal,or other goods,and these have to be shipped out somewere.Its been running this way for a wile,now they are going to increase exports,increasing gov.income ,more mony for the provice and services for its people.Be glad we have these resourses to trade and someone wants them.

      Rick

      Mar 14, 2013 at 9:08am

      In Louisiana, Kinder Morgan’s coal export facilities are so dirty that satellite photos clearly show coal dust pollution spewing into the Mississippi River.
      In South Carolina, coal dust from Kinder Morgan’s terminal contaminates oysters, pilings, and boats. Locals have even caught the company on video washing coal directly into sensitive waterways.
      In Virginia, Kinder Morgan’s coal export terminal is an open sore on the neighborhood, coating nearby homes in dust so frequently that even the mayor is speaking out about the problem.
      In Portland, Kinder Morgan officials bribed a ship captain to illegally dump contaminated material at sea, and their operations have repeatedly polluted the Willamette River.
      -Sightline Institute