BNSF

some of the key findings from the report:<ul style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px; word-spacing: 3.6px;"><li style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">ALEC has been influential on a wide range of legislation in Texas including:<ul style="box-sizing: inherit; margin: 0px 0px 0px 20px; padding: 0px;"><li style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The “Critical Infrastructure Protection” law enacted this year to criminalize protest;</li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Expansion of the state’s preemption of local gun safety regulations;</li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">A 2019 attempt to preempt local paid sick-leave ordinances;</li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Controversial “Stand your Ground” and Voter ID laws; and</li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">A law establishing a system of “high-risk insurance pools.”</li></ul></li><li style="box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">BNSF Railway, Energy Future Holdings, McLane Company, and VISTRA Energy are some of the known Texas-based funders of ALEC.</li><li style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">Both Common Cause and the Center for Media and Democracy have filed complaints with the IRS against ALEC for claiming 501(c)(3) charity status despite extensive lobbying for the benefit of its corporate backers.</li><li style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); box-sizing: inherit; list-style-type: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px;">The Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF), a right-wing “think tank” and a member of ALEC’s sister organization the State Policy Network, is ALEC’s closest partner in the state. TPPF is a funder and member of ALEC, serving on several of ALEC’s task forces.</li></ul>slapp
<a rel="nofollow" target="blank" href="http://desmogblog.cmail1.com/t/t-l-thirdrl-yuirlyty-tt/" id="yui_3_16_0_1_1428867647708_3818" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); outline: none; font-weight: bold; line-height: 24px; background: rgb(255, 255, 255);">BNSF Challenges Lawsuit From Engineer Who Ran For His Life From Exploding Oil "Bomb Train"</a>Some of the most heavily fracked parts of the US have experienced an unprecedented wave of earthquakes in recent years even though they’ve long been considered geologically stable. But the oil and gas industry is quick to reject any suggestion that fracking is to blame.The United States Geological Survey, for its part, has said in the past that the injection of fracking wastewater into deep geologic formations was a likely cause of the increased seismic activity in Oklahoma.  <a rel="nofollow" target="blank" href="http://desmogblog.cmail1.com/t/t-l-thirdrl-yuirlyty-td/" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; color: rgb(228, 29, 36); outline: none; font-weight: bold; background: transparent;">Read More</a><a href="http://desmogblog.cmail1.com/t/t-l-thirdrl-yuirlyty-td/">http://desmogblog.cmail1.com/t/t-l-thirdrl-yuirlyty-td/</a>==

<div class="byline environment" style=" background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">DeSmogBlog</a> [1] / By <a href="http://www.alternet.org/authors/justin-mikulka-and-steve-horn" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Justin Mikulka and Steve Horn</a> [2]</div>

<h1 property="dc:title" datatype="" class="node-title">White House Meeting Logs: Big Rail Lobbying Against "Bomb Train" Regulations It Publicly Touts</h1>

</div>

<div>

The Obama <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/inforeg_default" target="_blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA)</a> [3] has held the majority of its <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/2014/06/15/obama-white-house-agency-quietly-coddling-big-oil-bomb-trains-regulations" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">meetings on the proposed federal oil-by-rail safety regulations</a> [4] with oil and gas industry lobbyists and representatives.

But OIRA meeting logs reviewed by DeSmogBlog reveal that on June 10, the<a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/14825" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">American Association of Railroads (AAR)</a> [5] and many of <a href="https://www.aar.org/aboutus/Pages/Our-Members.aspx%23.U583MI1dVYA" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">its dues-paying members</a> [6] also <a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/viewEO12866Meeting?viewRule=false&rin=2137-AE91&meetingId=212&acronym=2137-DOT/PHMSA" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">had a chance to convene with OIRA</a> [7].

Big Rail has <a href="http://www.csx.com/index.cfm/customers/safety-security/" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">talked a big game to the public about</a> [8] its <a href="http://bismarcktribune.com/bakken/bnsf-says-safety-first/article_f1ff5cc6-e12e-11e3-9aee-001a4bcf887a.html" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">desire for increased safety measures</a> [9] for its trains carrying oil obtained via <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/fracking-the-future/" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”)</a> [10] in the<a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/7174" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Bakken Shale</a> [11]. What happens behind closed doors, the meeting logs show, tells another story.

At the June 12-13 <a href="http://www.railwayage.com/index.php/conferences/crude_by_rail.html" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Railway Age Oil-by-Rail Conference</a> [12], just two days after rail industry representatives met with OIRA, American Association of Railroads President <a href="http://www.du.edu/transportation/faculty-board/ed-hamberger.html" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Edward Hamberg</a> [13], former assistant secretary for governmental affairs at the <a href="http://www.dot.gov/" target="_blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)</a> [14], made the case for safety.

“Railroads believe that federal tank car standards should be raised to ensure crude oil and other flammable liquids are moving in the safest car possible based on the product they are moving,” <a href="http://www.rtands.com/index.php/freight/class-1/aars-hamberger-outlines-steps-taken-to-increase-safety-at-railway-ages-crude-by-rail-conference.html?channel=277" target="_blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">said Hamberg</a> [15].

“The industry also wants the existing crude oil fleet upgraded through retrofits or older cars to be phased out as quickly as possible.”

Yet despite public declarations along these lines, proactive safety measures were off the table for all four of Big Rail's presentations to OIRA.

Though private discussions, the documents made public from the meeting show one consistent message from the rail industry: safety costs big bucks. And these are bucks industry is going to fight against having to spend.

Massive War Room

<a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/viewEO12866Meeting?viewRule=false&rin=2137-AE91&meetingId=212&acronym=2137-DOT/PHMSA" target="_blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Those present at the June 10 OIRA meeting</a> [7] included representatives from AAR, the American Short Line & Regional Railroad Association, <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/8265" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Union Pacific</a> [16], <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/8243" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Burlington Northern Santa Fe</a> [17] (<a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/8244" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">BNSF</a> [18]), <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/16160" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">CSX Corporation</a>[19], <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/13324" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Norfolk Southern</a> [20] and the DOT.

Akin to the gargantuan war room in the film “Dr. Strangelove,” 26 people took part in the session.

Invitees included <a href="http://phmsa.dot.gov/portal/site/PHMSA/menuitem.6f23687cf7b00b0f22e4c6962d9c8789/?vgnextoid=6597df9cbd1a0110VgnVCM100000762c7798RCRD&vgnextchannel=816f143389d8c010VgnVCM1000008049a8c0RCRD&vgnextfmt=print" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Meredith Kelsch</a> [21], senior attorney for DOT; <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/orest-dachniwsky/10/666/296" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Orest Dachniwsky</a> [22], associate general counsel for BNSF; <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/robert-schmidt/70/443/a22" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Robert Schmidt</a> [23], senior manager of operations and casualty analysis for Union Pacific; and <a href="http://www.linkedin.com/pub/richard-theroux/13/a/519" target="blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Richard Theroux</a> [24], who has worked at the <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb" target="_blank" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Office of Management and Budget</a> [25] — parent of OIRA — for nearly three decades.

“19th Century Technology”

The heading on the first slide of <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/sites/beta.desmogblog.com/files/20140610135826983.pdf" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">CSX’s presentation for OIRA</a> [26] stated, “ECP brakes are expensive and do not offer material safety advantages.”

</div>

==

OIL: BNSF,owned by Warren Buffet, carries up to 70 percent of all  the crude-by-rail traffic in North America today. This railroad alone expects to load one million barrels per day onto its network by the end of 2014.

BNSF is the biggest hauler of corn and coal for electricity.

Almost 60 percent of coal in the United States is transported at least in part by train, with coal transportation accounting for 44 percent of rail freight ton-miles.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

According to its website, the coal hauled each year by BNSF Railway could produce more than 10 percent of the nation's total electricity. BNSF supplies 60 utilities in 28 states, as well as power plants in Canada, Mexico, Asia, and Europe. In 2008, BNSF transported 297 million tons of coal.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-5" title="">[6]</a> 90% of the coal BNSF transports is mined in the<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Powder_River_Basin" title="Powder River Basin">Powder River Basin</a>.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-6" title="">[7]</a>

The report goes on to note that "a coal export facility with the capacity to ship 20-30 million tons per year of Peabody Powder River Basin coal would result in the export of 35-53 million tons of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=CO2" title="CO2" class="mw-redirect">CO2</a> per year. Exporting 140 million tons a year would produce roughly 280 million tons of CO2 per year."<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

BNSF and UP invested more than $4 billion to increase capacity in recent years. BNSF laid nearly 3,000 miles of track from 2007 to 2009.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

===

On January 31, President Barack Obama's U.S. <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/2014/01/31/keystone-xl-final-environmental-impact-statement-released-still-flawed" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">State Department released its Final Environmental Impact Statement</a> [1] (FEIS) for the northern leg of <a href="http://desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/5420" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">TransCanada</a> [2]'s proposed Keystone XL <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/2632" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">tar sands</a> [3] pipeline.

The State Department's FEIS argues that the northern half of <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/5857" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Keystone XL</a> [4], if built, "remains unlikely to significantly impact the rate of extraction in the oil sands, or the continued demand for heavy crude oil at refineries in the United States."

But flying under the media's radar so far, the State Department review also highlights the prospect that Keystone XL will not only carry tar sands, but also be tapped to carry up to 100,000 barrels per day of oil extracted via <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/fracking-the-future" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">hydraulic fracturing ("fracking")</a> [5] from North Dakota's <a href="http://www.desmogblog.com/directory/vocabulary/7174" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Bakken Shale</a> [6] basin.

"[Keystone XL] would have the capacity to deliver up to 830,000 bpd, of which 730,000 bpd of capacity has been set aside for [tar sands] and the remaining 100,000 bpd of capacity set aside for [Bakken] crude oil," <a href="http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1011311/keystone-report.pdf" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">the report details</a> [7].

"[TransCanada] has represented that it has firm commitments to transport approximately 555,000 bpd of [tar sands], as well as 65,000 bpd of crude oil from the Bakken."

A smaller proposed <a href="http://www.transcanada.com/bakken.html" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">project owned by TransCanada called the Bakken MarketLink pipeline</a> [8] and <a href="http://www.bizapedia.com/ok/KEYSTONE-MARKETLINK-LLC.html" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">incorporated as Keystone Marketlink LLC in February 2011</a> [9], would ship the fracked oil to Keystone XL's northern leg as an "on ramp."

"This project would include a 5-mile pipeline, pumps, meters, and storage tanks to supply Bakken crude oil to the proposed pipeline," <a href="http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1011311/keystone-report.pdf" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">explains the FEIS</a> [7].

<h3 style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">For Bakken Fracked Oil, 'No' on KXL Means Rail</h3>

<p style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/04/24/if-keystone-xl-gets-blocked-can-trains-save-canadas-tar-sands/" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Many doubt that rail could ever replace pipeline</a> [10] as a viable marketing mechanism for Alberta's tar sands. But few could argue the fact that rail reigns supreme for bringing Bakken fracked oil to market.

"Last November, rail shipped 71 percent — nearly 800,000 barrels of oil a day — of the Bakken’s oil, much of it on lines across Minnesota and Wisconsin, while pipelines shipped just 22 percent, according to estimates from the North Dakota Pipeline Authority," <a href="http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/article/id/290504/" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">explains the Duluth News Tribune</a> [11].

The State Department FEIS suggests that if Keystone XL were never completed, the oil industry will instead ship the Bakken crude via rail. Both Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) are mentioned by name as the potential corporate beneficiaries.

"One new rail loading terminal would be needed in Epping [in ND] to ship Bakken crude oil," <a href="http://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1011311/keystone-report.pdf" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">reads the FEIS</a> [7]. "Sufficient off-loading rail facilities currently exist or are proposed in the Gulf Coast area such that no new terminals would need to be built under this scenario."

On December 30, 2013, a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNR7XxhF7W0">BNSF freight rail train carrying Bakken fracked oil exploded in Casselton, ND</a> [12], <a href="http://www.startribune.com/business/239948631.html" style=" color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">spilling over 400,000 gallons of oil</a> [13]. In July 2013, 47 people were killed in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec by another "bomb train" carrying Bakken crude.

===

Lynne Peeples

lynne.peeples@huffingtonpost.com

Coal Exports Contradict Obama's Climate Pledge, Critics Say

Posted: 07/25/2013 7:36 am EDT  |  Updated: 07/26/2013 11:48 am EDT

Environmental experts who remain unimpressed with President Barack Obama's war-on-carbon rhetoric point to one key reason for concern that's off most Americans' radar: U.S. coal exports.

A push to expand coal mining operations in the Powder River Basin of Montana and Wyoming, and to build three ports in Oregon and Washington to ship the fuel to Asia, could create more national and global environmental impact than a Canadian company's proposal to ferry Albertan tar sands to the U.S. Gulf Coast via the Keystone XL pipeline. Yet these remote projects are not getting the attention they deserve, critics suggest, and they fear Obama may be overlooking, apathetic to, or even supportive of them.

"If we were serious about doing something about global warming, the federal government certainly wouldn't be talking about controlling the burning of coal in the U.S. on the one hand while encouraging the export of coal to the rest of the world to be burned," said Thomas M. Power, research professor and professor emeritus of economics at the University of Montana in Missoula.

"There's certainly a contradiction there," he added, "where the left hand doesn't know, or pretends it doesn't know, what the right hand is doing."

The centerpiece of the climate plan Obama unveiled in June was a pledge to reign in the global-warming emissions of U.S. coal-fired power plants. Experts predict tightening controls will end up closing more plants and further troubling the U.S. coal industry, which experienced significant declines during Obama's first term.

However, U.S. coal exports during that same time more than doubled, according to a June report from the Department of Energy.

"Companies are investing in this Hail Mary pass, trying to get their coal onto ships and over to Asian markets," said Ross Macfarlane of the non-profit Climate Solutions. "They see nothing but declining demand and usage here in the U.S."

China reportedly plans to double its coal imports over the next three years, and efforts on the part of Korea and Japan are expected to follow close behind.

Experts argue that coal burned in Asia contributes just as much to global climate change as coal burned in Alabama. And it's the same climate change that scientists suggest may spur more frequent Sandy-like storms and heat waves here in the U.S.

Moreover, residents of other countries also suffer from the air pollution created by coal-fired power plants. China's toxic predicament, for example, is now particularly notorious.

Pollution from China can even travel by wind back to the Pacific Northwest, contaminating the region's air and water with toxins such as mercury.

Environmental and public health advocates further warn of the risks to local air and water quality from the mining and transport of coal. On Wednesday, the Natural Resources Defense Council joined other environmental groups in a lawsuit against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company over what they say is coal dust found in local waterways from the trains already shuttling the fossil fuel across the West.

===

The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States-based railroad company operating between 1970 and 1996. Its successor-in-interest is the BNSF Railway, which operates the trackage formerly owned by the Burlington Northern. It is the second largest railroad in the U.S. In November 2009 BNSF was bought for $34 billion by <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Warren_Buffett" title="Warren Buffett">Warren Buffett</a>'s <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Berkshire_Hathaway" title="Berkshire Hathaway">Berkshire Hathaway</a>, a conglomerate holding company headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, that oversees and manages a number of subsidiary companies. <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-Berkshire-0" title="">[1]</a>

<h2>Contents</h2>

[<a href="javascript:toggleToc()" class="internal" id="togglelink">hide</a>]</div>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#History">1 History</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Berkshire_Hathaway">2 Berkshire Hathaway</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Freight">3 Freight</a></li>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Exporting_PRB_coal">4.1 Exporting PRB coal</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

<li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Connections_to_the_George_W._Bush_Administration_and_Election_Campaigns">5 Connections to the George W. Bush Administration and Election Campaigns</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Climate_Change_Denial">6 Climate Change Denial</a>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Global_Climate_Coalition">6.1 Global Climate Coalition</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Greening_Earth_Society">6.2 Greening Earth Society</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

<li class="toclevel-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Articles_and_Resources">7 Articles and Resources</a>

<ul>

<li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#References">7.1 References</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#Related_SourceWatch_Articles">7.2 Related SourceWatch Articles</a></li>

<li class="toclevel-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#External_Articles">7.3 External Articles</a></li>

</ul>

</li>

</ul>

</td></tr></tbody></table>

<h2>History</h2>

Burlington Northern Railroad was the product of a March 2, 1970, merger comprising the Great Northern Railway, the Northern Pacific Railway, the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, and the Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway. Consent for this merger came only on the fourth attempt dating back to the days of James J. Hill, but for many years they shared a headquarters building in Saint Paul, Minnesota, until the merger was finally approved. On November 21, 1980, the former St. Louis - San Francisco Railway was acquired. In 1981, corporate headquarters of parent Burlington Northern Inc. were moved to Seattle, Washington, and in 1988, after its non-rail operations were spun off as Burlington Resources, to Fort Worth, Texas. On December 31, 1996, Burlington Northern merged with the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railway to form the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, whose name was later shortened to BNSF Railway.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-1" title="">[2]</a>

<h2>Berkshire Hathaway</h2>

On November 3, 2009, <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Warren_Buffett" title="Warren Buffett">Warren Buffett</a>'s <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Berkshire_Hathaway" title="Berkshire Hathaway">Berkshire Hathaway</a> said it would acquire the 77.4% of BNSF that it did not already own for about $26 billion in cash and stock.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-Berkshire-0" title="">[1]</a>

Analysts are divided on whether Buffett's purchase is a bet on or against coal. In 2007, Buffett's <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=PacifiCorp" title="PacifiCorp">PacifiCorp</a>, a subsidiary of his <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=MidAmerican_Energy" title="MidAmerican Energy">MidAmerican Energy</a> Company, cancelled six proposed coal-fired power plants. These included Utah's <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Intermountain_Power_Project_Unit_3" title="Intermountain Power Project Unit 3">Intermountain Power Project Unit 3</a>, <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Jim_Bridger_Unit_5" title="Jim Bridger Unit 5">Jim Bridger Unit 5</a>, and four proposed plants previously included in PacifiCorp's Integrated Resource Plan. MidAmerican's most recent plant <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Council_Bluffs_Energy_Center_Unit_4" title="Council Bluffs Energy Center Unit 4">Council Bluffs Energy Center Unit 4</a>, began operating in 2007.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-2" title="">[3]</a>

Coal accounts for one-quarter of BNSF’s revenue. However, if the use of coal declines, BNSF could still play a large role in moving other goods, as rail is seen as more fuel- and cost-efficient than trucks.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-3" title="">[4]</a>

<h2>Freight</h2>

BNSF is the biggest hauler of corn and coal for electricity. It also carries everyday items such as refrigerators, clothing, and TVs, with 31 percent of its 2009 profits from shipments of consumer products, moved from the West to major hubs like St. Louis, Kansas City, and Chicago. BNSF's next most important segment was coal, followed by industrial products like farm equipment, lumber, and chemicals. BNSF also hauls corn, wheat, and soybeans, much of it exported to China. Burlington Northern serves more of the nation's major grain-producing regions than any other railroad.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-Berkshire-0" title="">[1]</a>

Almost 60 percent of coal in the United States is transported at least in part by train, with coal transportation accounting for 44 percent of rail freight ton-miles.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

According to its website, the coal hauled each year by BNSF Railway could produce more than 10 percent of the nation's total electricity. BNSF supplies 60 utilities in 28 states, as well as power plants in Canada, Mexico, Asia, and Europe. In 2008, BNSF transported 297 million tons of coal.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-5" title="">[6]</a> 90% of the coal BNSF transports is mined in the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Powder_River_Basin" title="Powder River Basin">Powder River Basin</a>.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-6" title="">[7]</a>

<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Union_Pacific" title="Union Pacific">Union Pacific</a> (UP) and BNSF are the two major Class I railways that operate in the coal-rich <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Powder_River_Basin" title="Powder River Basin">Powder River Basin</a>. Only two railroads – the BNSF and Union Pacific – transport Powder River Basin coal westward. Coal trains typically employ 100-125 cars to haul Powder River Basin coal to electric utilities. The rail cars do not carry other commodities and return back to the mines empty. Coal from Powder River Basin mines in Wyoming and Montana is transported through Montana on the BNSF main line from both mines in Wyoming and Montana to Laurel, Montana.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

In the first six months of 2010, 3.5 million tons of coal was shipped from Powder River Basin Coal mines to Oregon and Washington for use in electrical generation and combined heat and power applications.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

<h3>Exporting PRB coal</h3>

In 2008, BNSF CEO Matt Rose said BNSF is talking to potential customers abroad about exporting <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Powder_River_Basin" title="Powder River Basin">Powder River Basin</a> coal, particularly to Asia, and looking at the logistical challenges of exporting large quantities.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

A 2011 Western Organization of Resource Councils Report, <a href="http://www.worc.org/userfiles/file/Coal/Exporting_Powder_River_Basin_Coal_Risks_and_Cost.pdf" class="external text" title="http://www.worc.org/userfiles/file/Coal/Exporting_Powder_River_Basin_Coal_Risks_and_Cost.pdf" rel="nofollow">"Exporting Powder River Basin Coal: Risks and Costs"</a> notes that an export market of 140 million tons a year of coal would require around 60 unit trains traveling to or from the West Coast and the Powder River Basin every day: "Again, for comparison, current volume of traffic is no more than 10 unit trains per day. Nearly all of the rail line from the Powder River Basin to the West Coast would eventually need upgrades to carry additional weight or expand additional tracks to accommodate an export market of this size."<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

The report goes on to note that "a coal export facility with the capacity to ship 20-30 million tons per year of Peabody Powder River Basin coal would result in the export of 35-53 million tons of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=CO2" title="CO2" class="mw-redirect">CO2</a> per year. Exporting 140 million tons a year would produce roughly 280 million tons of CO2 per year."<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

BNSF and UP invested more than $4 billion to increase capacity in recent years. BNSF laid nearly 3,000 miles of track from 2007 to 2009.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-worc-4" title="">[5]</a>

In early May 2011 it was announced that <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe" title="Burlington Northern Santa Fe" class="mw-redirect">Burlington Northern Santa Fe</a> railway would impose a new tariff for coal dust suppression on its coal train fleet. The tariff came after a March 2011 ruling by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board. The ruling capped a year long battle between the railroad and utilities over just who is responsible to pay for dust suppression along thousands of miles of rail used to connect the Powder River Basin to coal-fired power plants across the U.S. Coal customers will now have to pay an extra few million dollars per year to help control coal dust from loaded trains leaving Wyoming.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-7" title="">[8]</a>

<h2>Connections to the George W. Bush Administration and Election Campaigns</h2>

<ul>

<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_K.Rose" class="external text" title="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_K.Rose" rel="nofollow">Matthew K. Rose</a>: CEO of BNSF (2002-present); <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=George_Walker_Bush" title="George Walker Bush">George W. Bush</a> Pioneer fundraiser, 2000 and 2004 (Pioneer fundraisers bring at least $100,000 to the campaign)<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-jgbc-8" title="">[9]</a></li>

<li>

</li><li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Marc_F._Racicot" title="Marc F. Racicot">Marc F. Racicot</a>: Board member (2001-present day); Chairman of the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Republican_National_Committee" title="Republican National Committee">Republican National Committee</a> (2002-2003) and head of George W. Bush's 2004 re-election campaign; had previously served as Governor of <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Montana_and_coal" title="Montana and coal">Montana</a> (1993-2001) and as a lobbyist at Bracewell & Patterson for BNSF, <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Enron" title="Enron" class="mw-redirect">Enron</a>, and the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=American_Forest_and_Paper_Association" title="American Forest and Paper Association">American Forest and Paper Association</a>.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-jgbc-8" title="">[9]</a><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-9" title="">[10]</a></li>

</ul>

<h2>Climate Change Denial</h2>

<h3>Global Climate Coalition</h3>

Burlington Northern Santa Fe was a member of the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Global_Climate_Coalition" title="Global Climate Coalition">Global Climate Coalition</a>, an industry group that worked to curb any legislative attempts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-jgbc-8" title="">[9]</a> The coalition formed in 1989 as a response to the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Intergovernmental_Panel_on_Climate_Change" title="Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change">Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change</a> and opposed U.S. Senate ratification of the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Kyoto_Protocol" title="Kyoto Protocol">Kyoto Protocol</a>.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-10" title="">[11]</a> The group included <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=U.S._Chamber_of_Commerce" title="U.S. Chamber of Commerce">U.S. Chamber of Commerce</a> and major automotive and oil companies. It disbanded in 2002.

<h3>Greening Earth Society</h3>

BNSF was also a "key contributor" to the <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Greening_Earth_Society" title="Greening Earth Society">Greening Earth Society</a>, a coal-industry front group that formed in 1997.<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-jgbc-8" title="">[9]</a> The group, which appears to have collapsed in 2005, claimed that greenhouse gas emissions are a good thing because they will lead to greater plant growth and a greener environment. It claims that this viewpoint constitutes a "scientifically-sound perspective on the increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide."<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_note-11" title="">[12]</a>

<h2>Articles and Resources</h2>

<h3>References</h3>

<li id="cite_note-Berkshire-0">↑ <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-Berkshire_0-0" title="">1.0</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-Berkshire_0-1" title="">1.1</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-Berkshire_0-2" title="">1.2</a> Samantha Bomkamp, <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/03/ap/business/main5507318.shtml" class="external text" title="http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/03/ap/business/main5507318.shtml" rel="nofollow">"Buffett's big bet: $34B on 2nd-largest railroad"</a> Associated Press, November 3, 2009</li>

<li id="cite_note-1"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-1" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://www.bnsf.com/aboutbnsf/history/index.html" class="external text" title="http://www.bnsf.com/aboutbnsf/history/index.html" rel="nofollow">"About BNSF - BNSF History"</a> BNSF Railway Website, November 2009</li>

<li id="cite_note-2"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-2" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/4/14/01432/7381" class="external text" title="http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/4/14/01432/7381" rel="nofollow">"The Education of Warren Buffett: Why did the guru cancel six coal plants?"</a> Ted Nace, Gristmill, April 15, 2008</li>

<li id="cite_note-3"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-3" title="">↑</a> Keith Johnson,<a href="http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/11/04/trainspotting-warren-buffetts-big-and-safe-bet-on-rail/" class="external text" title="http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/11/04/trainspotting-warren-buffetts-big-and-safe-bet-on-rail/" rel="nofollow">"Trainspotting: Warren Buffett’s Big (And Safe) Bet on Rail"</a> Wall Street Journal Blogs, November 4, 2009</li>

<li id="cite_note-worc-4">↑ <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-0" title="">5.0</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-1" title="">5.1</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-2" title="">5.2</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-3" title="">5.3</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-4" title="">5.4</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-5" title="">5.5</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-worc_4-6" title="">5.6</a> <a href="http://www.worc.org/userfiles/file/Coal/Exporting_Powder_River_Basin_Coal_Risks_and_Cost.pdf" class="external text" title="http://www.worc.org/userfiles/file/Coal/Exporting_Powder_River_Basin_Coal_Risks_and_Cost.pdf" rel="nofollow">"Exporting Powder River Basin Coal: Risks and Costs"</a> Western Organization of Resource Councils Report, January 2011.</li>

<li id="cite_note-5"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-5" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://www.bnsf.com/markets/coal/index.html" class="external text" title="http://www.bnsf.com/markets/coal/index.html" rel="nofollow">"BNSF Markets and Services - Coal"</a> BNSF Railway Website, November 2009</li>

<li id="cite_note-6"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-6" title="">↑</a> Sioban Hughes and Mark Peters, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20091103-720973.html" class="external text" title="http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20091103-720973.html" rel="nofollow">Buffett's Burlington Bid A Bet On Coal's Continued Role</a>, Wall Street Journal, November 3, 2009.</li>

<li id="cite_note-7"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-7" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://www.newwest.net/topic/article/railroad_wins_in_wyoming_coal_dust_up/C618/L618/" class="external text" title="http://www.newwest.net/topic/article/railroad_wins_in_wyoming_coal_dust_up/C618/L618/" rel="nofollow">"Railroad Wins in Wyoming Coal Dust-Up"</a> Dustin Bleizeffer, NewWest.net, May 9, 2011.</li>

<li id="cite_note-jgbc-8">↑ <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-jgbc_8-0" title="">9.0</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-jgbc_8-1" title="">9.1</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-jgbc_8-2" title="">9.2</a> <a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-jgbc_8-3" title="">9.3</a> Jeff Goodell, "Big Coal", Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006.</li>

<li id="cite_note-9"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-9" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://helenair.com/news/local/article_e3c4e5c4-c060-5b13-9e5f-76cd3b6dcd1a.html" class="external text" title="http://helenair.com/news/local/article_e3c4e5c4-c060-5b13-9e5f-76cd3b6dcd1a.html" rel="nofollow">"Racicot elected to BNSF board",</a> "Independent Record", September 11, 2001.</li>

<li id="cite_note-10"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-10" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20060127223742/http://www.globalclimate.org/" class="external text" title="http://web.archive.org/web/20060127223742/http://www.globalclimate.org/" rel="nofollow">"Global Climate Coalition" archived website</a>, accessed April 28, 2010.</li>

<li id="cite_note-11"><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad#cite_ref-11" title="">↑</a> <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20050620083616/http://www.greeningearthsociety.org/" class="external text" title="http://web.archive.org/web/20050620083616/http://www.greeningearthsociety.org/" rel="nofollow">Greening Earth Society website</a>, archived on archive.org June 20, 2005, accessed March 2010.</li>

</ol>

<h3>Related SourceWatch Articles</h3>

<ul>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Powder_River_Basin" title="Powder River Basin">Powder River Basin</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Railroads_and_coal" title="Railroads and coal">Railroads and coal</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Warren_Buffett" title="Warren Buffett">Warren Buffett</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Wyoming_and_coal" title="Wyoming and coal">Wyoming and coal</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=MidAmerican_Energy" title="MidAmerican Energy">MidAmerican Energy</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=United_States_and_coal" title="United States and coal">United States and coal</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Global_warming" title="Global warming">Global warming</a></li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=J._Steven_Whisler" title="J. Steven Whisler">J. Steven Whisler</a> - former director</li>

<li><a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Marc_J._Shapiro" title="Marc J. Shapiro">Marc J. Shapiro</a> - director</li>

</ul>

<h3>External Articles</h3>

<a href="http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Wikipedia" title="Wikipedia">Wikipedia</a> also has an article on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad" class="external text" title="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burlington_Northern_Santa_Fe_Railroad" rel="nofollow">Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad</a>. This article may use content from the Wikipedia article under the terms of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFDL" class="external text" title="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GFDL" rel="nofollow">GFDL</a>.

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<h1 class="title-news" style="list-style: none; margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 20px 0px 0px; border: 0px; overflow: visible; color: rgb(17, 17, 17); line-height: 36px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Vancouver, Washington Oil Train Terminal Approved By Port Commissioners</h1>

AP  |  Posted: 07/23/2013 3:52 pm EDT

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VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) — Port of Vancouver commissioners voted Tuesday to approve a lease for a Columbia River terminal that would take in crude oil by train from North Dakota and ship it to West Coast refineries.

About 60 people were at the port's office for the vote, which followed Monday night's public hearing, The Columbian reported (http://bit.ly/11ccypC ).

The project will be reviewed by the state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council, which will make a recommendation to Washington Gov. Jay Inslee for a final decision.

Port managers recommended approval of the deal with Tesoro Corp. and Savage Cos. for the economic benefits. Neighborhood and environmental groups oppose it because of safety and ecological risks.

Oil trains from the Bakken shale formation in North Dakota would run through the Columbia River Gorge and Vancouver.

Demonstrators outside Monday's hearing held banners in French and English that read, "In solidarity with Lac-Megantic," a reference to the Quebec town where 50 people were killed on July 6 when a runaway train carrying crude oil derailed and exploded.

Vancouver and Portland members of the national environmental group Climate Parents presented the three port commissioners with 14,000 signatures demanding they reject the Tesoro-Savage plan. Speakers at the workshop said the terminal would increase the risks of oil spills, releases toxics into the air and worsen climate change.

Tesoro is a current tenant at the port. With Savage it wants to build a 42-acre terminal with six storage tanks capable of handling 360,000 barrels a day for shipment to 19 West Coast and British Columbia refineries, The Oregonian reported (http://bit.ly/13AAtzW ).

By comparison, the Alaska pipeline is averaging 559,000 barrels a day this year, according to Alyeska Pipeline Services. A barrel is 42 gallons.

The Vancouver terminal operation would involve as many as four, mile-long oil trains a day, operated by Burlington Northern Santa Fe.

The 10-year lease would bring the port $4.5 million a year. It currently operates on revenue of $34 million a year.

The companies also would invest up to $100 million in the terminal that would employ 120 workers, and agree to rail and operation safety plans.

Tesoro, Savage and Burlington Northern Santa Fe have said they'll use modern equipment, rail cars and double-hulled vessels.

BNSF invested $100 million in railway upgrades last year in Washington, including track through the Gorge, spokesman Gus Melonas told The Oregonian. The company is training emergency response personnel in Stevenson and Vancouver on tank car operations, he said.

Trains already deliver oil to the U.S. Oil refinery in Tacoma and the Tesoro refinery near Anacortes. BP plans to build a rail yard at its Cherry Point refinery north of Bellingham.

An oil terminal already is operating on the Columbia at a former ethanol plant at Port Westward near Clatskanie, Ore. Other oil terminals are proposed in Tacoma and Grays Harbor County.

_

Information from: The Columbian, http://www.columbian.com

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BNSF

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