• Elwha Dam Removal
• Coal In The Northwest
• Voices of Coal
• Clean Water: The Next Act

The economic expansion in Asia is ramping up that region’s demand for coal. And the energy resource is in abundance in the Powder River Basin that straddles the Montana-Wyoming border.

But how to get it from the Rocky Mountain heartland of North America to factories and power plants in China, Japan, South Korea?

That’s where proposed coal export terminals come in.

Three projects — two in Washington and one in Oregon — are on the table. In May 2013, a proposal to build an export terminal at the Port of St. Helens in Oregon was dropped. A proposal to export coal from Coos Bay, Ore., lost support in March, 2013 from its investors. Another proposal to build a terminal in Hoquiam, Wash., was withdrawn in August, 2012.

They have drawn support for promised jobs and local economic benefits. Critics point to the potential for negative environmental and human health impacts and traffic congestion.

(Hover over markers to hear reports on coal in communities of the Northwest. Then click “website” for more EarthFix coverage. Click here for larger map view. Note: Train routes are approximations. They illustrate potential corridors based on existing lines and publicly available information.)

Gateway Pacific Terminal: near Bellingham, Wash.

Seattle-based SSA Marine wants to build a terminal within the Cherry Point Aquatic Reserve. It would ship millions of tons of coal from Montana and Wyoming to Asia. The company says it would create thousands of jobs and generate millions in tax and other revenues.

Players: SSA Marine, Peabody Energy, Gateway Pacific, Korea East-West Power

Full Capacity: To be reached in 2026

Export Plans: 59.5 million* short tons/year

Train: 18 trains/day (9 full and 9 empty)

Train Cars: 1,370/day

Vessels: 487/year

What’s Next: Government agencies began in October, 2012 taking public input before they issue an environmental impact statement and from there, approve development permits. Hearings have been scheduled from Oct. 27 to Dec. 12 throughout Washington. Find information here on dates and locations. A summary of the public comment can be found here.

Port of Grays Harbor: Hoquiam, Wash.

There are no official agreements or permits for the terminal proposal. RailAmerica, the company that had been considering building the terminal, announced in August, 2012 it was no longer interested. The company previously said it would create 60 full-time jobs exporting 5 million tons of coal. The Port of Grays Harbor says it would have increased annual vessel traffic by 100 ships.

Player: RailAmerica

Full Capacity: To Be Determined

Export Plans: 5.5 million short tons

Train Cars: 2 trains/day

Vessels: 100/year

What’s Next: Rail America abandoned its plans in August, 2012 before submitting a formal application or permit request to start the terminal construction process.

Millenium Bulk: Longview, Wash.

A $640 million terminal that would eventually export 44 million tons of coal at a private brownfield site near Longview, Wash. It’s a joint venture of Australia’s Ambre Energy and Arch Coal, the second-largest coal producer in the U.S.

Players: Alcoa, Ambre Energy, Arch Coal

Full Capacity: To be reached by 2018

Export Plans: 48.5 million short tons/year

Trains: 16 trains/day (8 full and 8 empty)

Train Cars: 960/day

Vessels: 2/day

What’s Next: Washington Department of Ecology and Cowlitz County are conducting an environmental review of the project and will take public comments as part of the scoping process later this year.

Port Westward: Port of St. Helens, Ore.

Texas-based Kinder Morgan is proposing to design, build and operate a coal export terminal at the Port of St. Helens. PGE dealt a blow to the plan. The utility doesn’t want coal dust interfering with equipment at its nearby natural gas-fired power plant.

Players: Kinder Morgan Energy Partners

Full Capacity: To Be Determined (TBD)

Export Plans: 30 million tons/year

Trains: TBD

Train Cars: TBD

Vessels: TBD

What’s Next: Kinder Morgan announced in May, 2013 it was abandoning plans for the export terminal. It said it is interested in building at an alternative site in the Northwest.

Morrow Pacific: Ports of Morrow and St. Helens, Ore.

This two-port plan would bring coal by rail to the Port of Morrow in Boardman, Ore. The Boardman terminal is also known as the Coyote Island Terminal. There it would be transferred by barge and delivered to the Port of St. Helens and loaded onto ships headed for Asia.

Players: Ambre Energy North America & Pacific Transloading

Full Capacity: To be reached by 2016

Export Plans: 8.8 million short tons/year

Trains: 22 trains/week (11 full and 11 empty)

Trains Cars: 1,459/week

Barges: 12 tows/week

Vessels: 128/year

What’s Next: The Oregon Department of State Lands is set to decide Sept. 1, 2013 on a dredging permit at the Port of Morrow. The Army Corps of Engineers is conducting an environmental assessment, which is less exhaustive than an environmental impact statement would be. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality is processing two permits; a water pollution and an air quality permit. If the project is approved, it also will require state storm water permits. OR DEQ will hold public information meetings in December. Visit the website for more details on dates and locations. The Oregon Department of Lands and the U.S Army Corps of Engineers are processing another permit jointly. Comments are online.

Project Mainstay: Port of Coos Bay, Ore.

The port is in negotiations with Metro Ports, a stevedoring and terminal management company based in California, and Mitsui, a large international trading company involved with commodities.

Players: Metro Ports (Mitsui and Korean Electric Power Corp. dropped out).

Full Capacity: to be reached by 2023

Export Plans: 11 million short tons/year

Trains: 4 trains (2 full and 2 empty)

Train Cars: 600/day

Vessels: 200/year

What’s Next: The Port of Coos Bay is regrouping after all three of its business partners — Metropolitan Stevedore Co., Mitsui and the Korean Electric Power Corp. — dropped out of negotiations in March, 2013. the port is not ruling out a restart with new or returning negotiating partners. To proceed, the port and private companies would need to acquire land on the North Spit from the Port and negotiate deal over access to the rail line, or decide to walk away from the project. The Port is seeking dredging permits from government regulators. The dredging would deepen the channel to accomodate vessels carrying a variety of commodities, which could include coal.

*Includes coal and other dry bulk commodities such as grain.

NOTE: The U.S. Energy Information Administration uses the U.S. short ton in its coal reports. A U.S. short ton is 2,000 pounds.

Coal In The Northwest 101

For a broad overview on the forces behind these proposed export terminals, here’s a video produced by a team of University of Oregon journalism students and voiced by EarthFix/KUOW journalist Ashley Ahearn: