A Calgary company wants to build a LPG terminal in Portland; they'd bring propane in by train, store it in large tanks, then pipe it into ships bound for Asia. Unfortunately, the city's zoning code at the site, at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, doesn't permit such a pipeline. So in a rare burst of sanity, the city's contemplating a zoning change to allow it. Naturally, some people have a problem with this.
As you might surmise, it's the usual obstructionists:
"At a time when we are working very hard to bring the carbon footprint of Portland down, this is a lot of new carbon into the atmosphere," Bob Sallinger, conservation director for the Audubon Society of Portland, told the Oregonian.
Supporters say the terminal would create jobs and generate millions of dollars in tax revenue. Meanwhile, opponents say the propane terminal project could open Portland to other fuel exports. They also raise safety concerns.
The company estimates the terminal would generate nearly $92 million in property taxes over the next decade and an estimated 30 to 40 permanent jobs, plus 800 temporary construction jobs.
But that's irrelevant. And Bob Sallinger is one of the reasons why I stopped supporting Portland Audubon years ago. I was fine with giving them money before they switched course and started making obstructionism their primary goal. Today, they oppose responsible forest management, energy production, and jobs - even while holding their hands out, begging for donations.
Screw 'em. I became disillusioned with them when the National organization got involved in litigation in an effort to stop a USFWS plan to capture all remaining California condors and place them into intensive captive management programs designed to the gene pool of the birds and eventually begin reintroducing them into suitable habitat. They lost, the program went forward, and it's been very successful.
But these clowns would have rather have them go extinct. Worse yet, after a few years, they featured a photo of a California condor on the cover of their magazine and implied that that they were somehow involved in the successful recovery of the species. That did it for me. Sallinger just reinforces my decision.
