By Nancy Hiser and Shawn Looney
The Linnton Neighborhood Association and Tank the Tanks urge everyone to sign the petition link at the end. Below is the text.
Dear Governor, Oregon Legislators, DEQ Director, Multnomah County Commissioners, Portland City Council, Metro Council, Oregon Federal Delegation:
We are deeply concerned about the threat posed by fossil fuel companies at Multnomah County’s Critical Energy Infrastructure (CEI) Hub. They threaten our lives, our communities, and the environment. Flammable, toxic fuels sit in old, unsafe tanks, on unstable soil along the Willamette River. When an earthquake strikes, we face the biggest disaster in US history. This is not an imaginary danger–it’s a ticking time bomb that threatens us daily.
Oregon legislation now requires the state’s largest liquid fuel facilities to submit seismic stability studies. Then they’re expected to make their tanks and structures safer. This will take up to 10 years. An earthquake could hit tomorrow.
We know earthquakes aren’t the only causes of disaster. Floods, lightning, railcar wrecks, equipment failures, and human error are also potential triggers.
A “Can’t Breathe, Can’t Leave” scenario came to light in an October 2023 report – Risk of Earthquake-Induced Hazardous Materials Releases in Multnomah County – produced by the PSU Institute for Sustainable Solutions for the Multnomah County Office of Emergency Management.
The report found in Multnomah County over a thousand hazmat storage containers can fail in a disaster; those with toxic gasses can release lethal plumes. In the County and beyond, this can make it impossible for living things to seek safety. People won’t be able to either shelter in place or evacuate. The biggest impact will be in marginalized communities. No action has been taken to prevent toxic gas releases. Community safety must come first.
We can’t stop natural disasters. The fuel tanks should be moved to safer locations and spread throughout the state so fuel will be available to meet communities’ needs.
While fuel tanks are still here, measures like these can reduce life-safety dangers at the Hub:
• Prevent the release of toxic gasses that are likely to spread
deadly plumes into the air in an earthquake or accident.
• Reduce the amount of flammable fuel that is stored at the Hub.
• Remove unused, out-of-service fuel tanks that can collapse, ignite fires, and contaminate the river.
• Require facilities to install operational shutdowns to stop cascading events in a disaster.
• Hold facilities financially responsible now for the risks they pose. This is the best way to avoid costly and time-consuming litigation later.
Government officials and decision-makers, please safeguard our human, community, and environmental rights. Communities must be places where we live without fear of a catastrophe caused by corporate negligence and past government inaction.
Risk of Earthquake-Induced Hazardous Materials Releases in Multnomah County, Oregon: Two Scenarios Examined, prepared by PSU Institute for Sustainable Solutions for Multnomah County Office of Emergency Management – tinyurl.com/4hcfvmbw
Sign the Petition to Prevent Toxic Gas Releases
Please add your voice to this critical Change.org petition to elected officials by signing here: tinyurl.com/up9rrh2c