West Seattle, Washington
03 Sunday
ORIGINAL REPORT, 11:02 PM SUNDAY: Most of the time when we mention a city councilmember’s visit to West Seattle, it’s in connection with a meeting or a walking tour, staples of an elected official’s life. But Councilmember Mike O’Brien came here this morning for something entirely different:
He was among those who participated this morning in the latest round of “kayaktivist” training in advance of the on-water demonstrations planned when Shell‘s Arctic-offshore-drilling rigs get to Terminal 5. The activist coalition that’s organizing them has been leading kayak training with Alki Kayak Tours at Seacrest, roughly twice a week for the past few weeks. Our partners at The Seattle Times covered this morning’s session too, and photographer Ken Lambert went out on the water for this photo he tweeted:
Kayakers prep for oil-drilling protests in W.Seattle http://t.co/c5K6Am2Xwd (photo @SeaTimesFotoKen) @westseattleblog pic.twitter.com/lZpVO3Rz8S
— Ken Lambert (@SeaTimesFotoKen) May 4, 2015
The Times’ story with Ken’s photos is here. O’Brien chairs the council’s Planning, Land Use, and Sustainability Committee, which on Tuesday will consider a resolution that voices opposition to Arctic offshore drilling and urges the Port of Seattle to reconsider the lease with Foss that is bringing the Shell rigs here. The first to arrive in Washington waters, the drilling platform Polar Pioneer, is still in Port Angeles; a Chamber of Commerce webcam there still has it in sight; live image here, and here’s a screengrab from earlier today (used with the PA C of C’s permission):
No date set for its expected tow to Terminal 5; the other drill rig Shell has said it hopes to use in the Arctic Ocean this summer, the drillship Noble Discoverer, left its latest stop, off Honolulu, more than a week ago and is not back in MarineTraffic.com range yet. The only Shell ship to visit Terminal 5 so far, the icecutter Aiviq, is back there now after some time in Port Angeles. As announced in mid-April, the anti-drilling coalition has set May 16-18 for a “festival of resistance” starting with a kayak flotilla.
ADDED 8:42 AM MONDAY: Regional news orgs are reporting that Mayor Murray announced at a breakfast event today that the city has determined new/renewed permit(s) will be needed before Shell’s rigs can come here. We’re working to find out more and will have a separate story soon.
Two updates on the Port of Seattle‘s Terminal 5 in West Seattle:
VEHICLE CARRIER ON THE WAY: The vehicle carrier Ryujin is expected at T-5 tonight (unrelated to the Foss/Shell operations for which a third of T-5 is currently leased.). Port spokesperson Peter McGraw tells WSB, “It will be delivering 2,400 autos that will be stored there for up to a few weeks. There may be other car-carrying vessels over this time frame as well. At some point they will be loaded back on to the vessel and off to their planned destination.” (MarineTraffic.com shows the Ryujin currently near the entrance to the Strait of Juan de Fuca. *Tuesday 6:49 am update – It’s just now passing Port Angeles.*)
SECURITY CONTRACT FOR T-5: One of the items on the agenda for tomorrow’s Port Commission meeting at Sea-Tac Airport is authorization for up to $3 million to be spent for T-5 security over the next 5 years. Here’s the agenda document:
The memo says security used to be the responsibility of whomever was leasing the terminal; since the lease expired last summer, the port has contracted with security guards, which cost almost $100,000 in the last three months of last year. They’ve already sent this proposal out to bid, with a contract to be awarded later this week, and expecting it will cost $400,000 to $600,000 a year. The memo also says the current “interim tenant” – which would be Foss – is picking up 25 percent of the security costs. The commission meeting is at 1 pm in the airport’s conference center and also is streamed live online.
(Saturday photo by Chuck Jacobs)
Six days after arriving in Port Angeles, the drilling platform Polar Pioneer is still there, being prepared for its tow to West Seattle’s Terminal 5. The Peninsula Daily News reports that it’s an economic boom to PA – both from the workers that are getting it ready for the trip, and from tourists who have come to gawk at it. It’s expected to start heading this way by early May. When it gets here – it’ll be a gawk magnet even here in the big city. Remember the SBX floating radar platform that was here in 2011?
(WSB photo, August 2011)
Polar Pioneer is 25 percent taller – 355 feet, compared to the SBX’s 280. Pending the Polar Pioneer’s arrival, the icebreaker Aiviq remains the lone Shell-related vessel at Terminal 5; the other drilling vessel, Noble Discoverer (derrick height 170′), is still crossing the North Pacific, headed this way.
Meantime, Arctic drilling opponents are still preparing for rallies here, even before the Shell drill rigs get here. The “Shell No” coalition sent this photo of banner-waving on the foot/bike bridge over the Fauntleroy approach to the bridge this past Monday evening:
They’re planning to rally at Myrtle Edwards Park at 2 pm this Sunday in addition to already-announced mid-May actions – that’s the rally announced during the “encouragement march” in West Seattle earlier this month. A kayak flotilla is also planned for May 16th, with ongoing training at Alki Kayak Tours in West Seattle – a session at 5 pm tonight is for would-be trainers.
And the Port of Seattle already has a webpage linking to its reminders and background about the T-5 situation, pending the start of protests and arrival of more vessels, including a link to the Coast Guard’s announcement of “safety zones” and a “voluntary free-speech zone.”
With the platform and vessel that Shell hopes to use for Arctic drilling getting closer to Western Washington waters, opponents of their expected stay at Terminal 5 have announced a schedule for protests, while the U.S. Coast Guard has announced “temporary safety zones” as well as a “voluntary First Amendment zone” worked out with potential waterborne protesters.
First, here’s where it all stands:
Two months have passed since the Port of Seattle announced it had signed a lease with Foss for a third of the idle-since-last-summer Terminal 5 expanse in West Seattle, with Foss expecting to host Royal Dutch Shell offshore-drilling equipment that would eventually head to the Arctic if Shell gets final federal approval.
Since then, as reported here and elsewhere, there have been protests, legal action, and preparation, and more in the works.
WHAT’S HAPPENING AT TERMINAL 5 NOW: Foss and the port have said preparatory work is already under way.
WHERE ARE SHELL’S DRILL RIGS? The Polar Pioneer, crossing the Pacific on the deck-cargo ship Blue Marlin, is expected in Port Angeles on Friday, with a two-week stay there before moving on to Seattle, reports The Peninsula Daily News. The Greenpeace activists who climbed onto it and camped out for five-plus days came down last Saturday, citing stormy weather; a federal judge in Alaska later granted Shell’s request for a court order against them. Their boat the Greenpeace Esperanza is still tailing the Polar Pioneer/Blue Marlin as far as we know.
The Noble Discoverer, the drilling vessel that was here in 2012 before it (along with the now-scrapped Kulluk) got into trouble in Alaska, is still crossing the Pacific too.
(2012 photo by Long B. Nguyen)
It stopped a week ago in the Marshall Islands port of Majuro, and then was reported to be Hawai’i-bound. Majuro to Honolulu is 2,300 miles; then it’s another 2,600 miles to get here.
OTHER SHELL VESSELS: The Coast Guard’s announcement today mentions the Aiviq:
That’s a photo we took while the Aiviq was here with other Shell-related vessels in 2012 (MarineTraffic.com shows it currently moored in Everett).
PORT COMMISSION: Its public meeting yesterday afternoon at Pier 69 was the first in three meetings that did not include dozens of speakers on the subject of the Terminal 5 lease. Four people did speak, all voicing opposition to the lease and concern about Arctic drilling and climate change. The bulk of the comment period was spent on other Port of Seattle business, primarily plans for a new international-arrivals facility.
COAST GUARD ANNOUNCEMENT: From the full announcement published today, which you can read here:
… A 500-yard safety zone [above] will be in place around the Noble Discoverer, Blue Marlin, Polar Pioneer, Aiviq and other Arctic drilling related vessels while underway. A 100-yard safety zone will be in place around the same vessels while moored or anchored. …
…The Voluntary First Amendment Area [above] is a regulated navigation area in Elliott Bay, developed following discussions with several special interest groups, where the Coast Guard recommends, but does not require, those desiring to express their views on Arctic drilling assemble. It is a no wake area where individuals can congregate without compromising their personal safety or jeopardizing the safe navigation of maritime traffic around them. …
As you can see from the map, that zone will be off the West Seattle shoreline north of T-5. As for when it might be used …
‘RESISTANCE’ PLANNED FOR MAY 16-18: In addition to the already-announced downtown waterfront rally on April 26th, opponents have announced “three days of creative, people-powered resistance to Shell and the climate crisis” for May 16th through 18th, including a kayak flotilla on the first day. Their plan detailed on this website vows to “transform … Terminal 5 and Harbor Island into a festival of resistance that will nonviolently block Shell’s preparations for Arctic drilling.”
Gathering at the 5 ways corner – where rally will happen. Just west of low bridge. pic.twitter.com/FPb3jo0HNn
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) April 5, 2015
3:23 PM: This rally was just the start, promised speakers at the rally that wrapped up today’s “Port Encouragement March” about an hour ago, with more than 50 people walking from Walk-All-Ways in The Junction to the 5-way intersection by Terminal 5, west of the low bridge, in hopes of “encouraging” the Port of Seattle to cancel the T-5 interim lease that will bring Shell Arctic-drilling equipment here.
The march was peaceful and relatively low-key – several speakers and a song at the end; walking along from The Triangle to the end of the route, we noted lots of sign waving along the way, some horn-honking from passing motorists, one bicyclist telling the marchers “thank you.”
Seattle Police officers on bicycles accompanied the march, which stayed on sidewalks/trails throughout.
ADDED 4:37 PM: Here’s how it unfolded: Participants gathered at Walk All Ways in The Junction, including the Raging Grannies:
Today’s march segued from a standing monthly rally to encourage people to take action against climate. Marchers headed east on Alaska – along the way, American Legion Post 160 in The Triangle offered a “hydration station”:
Staying on sidewalks and trails along the way, the group headed down 35th to Avalon:
On Avalon, the police bicycle escorts blocked traffic at the Genesee stoplight for an extra few moments so everyone could cross safely:
Port in view now. TV cams shooting marchers along Avalon. Spotted police lt. in unmarked car. pic.twitter.com/3qt3CISB4e
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) April 5, 2015
Turning onto the Alki Trail under/alongside the west end of the West Seattle Bridge, the marchers were urged to stay single-file so bicyclists could get past them. Those with signs held them high to catch the eyes of drivers heading westbound on Spokane:
Rather than going all the way to the gates of Terminal 5, the group stopped by the 5-way intersection west of the low bridge and listened to a few short speeches before the rally ended.
Organizer Stu Hennessey, a longtime West Seattle community advocate, said he felt “betrayed” by the Port’s decision:
Speaking second, Zarna Joshi of Rising Tide, who said there is more at stake than people realize:
She criticized Port Commissioner Tom Albro for telling her he wouldn’t take action to try to cancel the lease, even though he personally opposes Arctic drilling. (At the last Port Commission, as we reported in as-it-happened coverage, both Albro and Courtney Gregoire, the other anti-drilling commissioner, had said they won’t take action to try to cancel it.) Organizers of today’s march included the Green Party of Seattle and Greenpeace, which also provided a speaker:
She said another rally is being planned for April 26th, after the expected arrival of Shell equipment including the drilling platform Polar Pioneer, now in the North Pacific and being trailed by a Greenpeace boat. No counter-protesters showed up today, but supporters of the 2-year lease for Foss to use a third of T-5 say it will provide hundreds of jobs and that it’s better to have a company like Foss, which has a good environmental record, handling this work, than someone else.
1:16 PM: We’re back at the Sea-Tac Airport Conference Center for the Port of Seattle Commission‘s regular meeting. Nothing regular about the meetings lately, as the public-comment period two weeks ago ran more than 3 hours, with almost 80 people commenting about the port’s controversial lease with Foss to host part of Shell‘s Arctic-drilling fleet on part of West Seattle’s Terminal 5. The gallery is full again today – more regional media has shown up than two weeks ago, too – and we will chronicle as it goes.
Public testimony is first on the agenda. #1 – A representative of the Building and Construction Trades says they support the lease because of the jobs it will provide and “the dreams of the future. … We would hope the port follows through with this lease so we can build for the future …” #2, Jordan Royer, representing the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association, terminal operators and shipping lines. “This is important because it allows you to reinvest into the terminal, to be competitive on the world stage. … We lose the port, we lose manufacturing … My biggest concern is that if for some reason political winds take your eye off the ball and your core business, that it will be difficult to get other maritime businesses to look at this port as competitive.” #3, Emily Johnston from 350.org, refers to the taped comments by Commissioner Bill Bryant published by The Stranger: “‘You silly people,’ leave these decisions to the grownups – that is in effect what (supporters) are saying. … (But) the so-called grownups have failed us … Scientists have told us this is a catastrophic project and the regulatory bodies have failed to step in.” She mentions that the Obama Administration is likely to give permission for Arctic drilling, maybe even today. She says the lease is “supporting catastrophic climate change … You are all addicts, and this is your intervention. … All lives are on the line.” First applause of the meeting. #4, Cameron Williams, with ILWU Local 19, saying he represents about 3,000 dock workers. “I commend the commission for (moving forward with) the lease.”
#5, Paul Stevens, president/CEO of Foss, thanking the commissioners. He notes that 164 are “working to support our project at T-5,” including “101 at the facility,” a dozen of them Foss employees. “We have contributed $3 million in revenue to the port since signing the lease.” He mentions that they expect to bring non-Shell projects in, as well. And he says maritime competition is tough and faced by this area – and that the competitiveness is enhanced if there’s certainty that political pressure won’t affect deals. #6, a man identifying himself as an Edmonds resident. He says opposition to this and to drilling is “alarmism.” #7, Beth Smith of Foss says having local oversight of this project will make a difference. #8, a woman wearing a red T-shirt reading “The People vs. Shell.” She says Greenpeace has a ship in the Pacific “keeping an eye on Shell’s massive drilling ships as they head north” and promises to “shine a light on one of the most dangerous drilling projects in the world.” #9, Zarna, in the same T-shirt, saying she’s with the Alliance for Jobs and Clean Energy. She acknowledges that jobs matter, but “Shell and oil workers around the country are striking, and have been striking for 2 months, for health and safety reasons.” She says she has spoken to workers in Anacortes who told her about deaths on the job. “When you say this is about jobs, it’s not true – it’s about money” and says Commissioner John Creighton received campaign contributions from executives of Foss and its parent company Saltchuk. “How much money will it cost to buy you back?” she yells, and presents the commission with a symbolic “blank check.”
#10, another man in the same T-shirt. He says he apologizes to his brothers and sisters in labor, “but jobs go up and down, and particularly with wise leaders, we can increase jobs with good jobs, quality jobs, but the climate is on a descent straight down.” He says Commissioner Bryant’s remarks included ridiculing his kayak, and says he’s sorry that commissioners no longer seemed to be supporting the reasons he voted for them. “I have only a few more years to live. It’s not about me … (future generations) are going to live with (the results of this). We have a blessing here, and we’re destroying it for money – Shell profit. I like Foss, Foss has been around a long time, has done a good job, but Foss has sold their name to Shell.”
AS-IT-HAPPENED COVERAGE CONTINUES AFTER THE JUMP:
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Back on Friday, thanks to a tip, we reported on the looming deadline for telling the Port of Seattle what you think about a Terminal 5 issue that’s not directly related to the Shell drilling-fleet controversy: The fact the port has declared the long-term modernization project will be environmentally non-signficant and therefore doesn’t require an environmental-impact study. Some West Seattleites disagree and are sending in their comments by today’s deadline, including a letter that we’re told represents more than two dozen residents in East Admiral, just upslope from T-5. One of their points:
The road traffic resulting from simultaneously unloading two post-Panamax ships will cripple the already congested West Seattle bridges. We do not have an answer to this, nor does the Port. Therefore, we recommend an environmental impact study be done to understand the traffic solutions before reaching the point of no return.
They also suggest the port is gambling a quarter-billion dollars or so on this without knowing whether the market might change irreversibly in the few years T-5 will be closed. Here is their full letter:
They’re also sending it to city and county leaders and asking for their support. As explained in our Friday report, the documents about the “non-significance” decision are here, and comments can be sent to SEPA.p@portseattle.org.
1:02 PM: King County Superior Court Judge Mariane Spearman has ruled that the environmental-coalition lawsuit challenging the Port of Seattle‘s interim lease for Terminal 5 can proceed, one week after hearing arguments on a motion in the case. We’re still reading the ruling, but for starters, here’s what the coalition says in a news release this afternoon:
Seattle-area groups are challenging the Port of Seattle’s lack of public process and failure to assess the environmental repercussions of becoming Shell’s Arctic drilling homeport.
On March 2, 2015, the environmental groups pushed for swift review of their legal challenge in King County Superior Court.
Today Judge Mariane Spearman ruled that the case can be heard and directed the parties to negotiate the record for her review. The coalition is asking that the court vacate the Port of Seattle’s lease based on violations of the State Environmental Policy Act and the Shoreline Management Act. The Earthjustice lawsuit explains that the Port violated its long-range sustainability plans and its shoreline permit, which designate Terminal 5 as a cargo terminal and not a homeport for a drilling fleet. Both Shell and the Port were not forthcoming in specifying when the oil giant’s drilling fleet is expected to arrive in Seattle’s waters.
IN RELATED NEWS: A new public records release shows an intensive industry and labor lobbying effort to urge the Port of Seattle to enter into the lease. The Port lease was made known to industry long before any public disclosure. See document here.
The first public disclosure of the lease was in the agenda released days before the January 13th Port Commission meeting at which it was first publicly discussed and at which three of five commissioners affirmed letting staff proceed with it. On February 11th, in a letter to the environmental coalition, Port CEO Ted Fick announced he had signed the lease on February 9th. At the commission’s March 10th meeting, the open-public-comment period spanned more than three hours, with most of the speakers expressing opposition to the lease (WSB as-it-happened coverage here). The commission’s next meeting is next Tuesday (March 24th), with a semi-related item on the agenda.
ADDED 1:21 PM: We’ve just read the ruling. Among key points related to what was argued in court last Friday, Judge Spearman says the “Washington State Constitution recognizes the right to seek discretionary review of an administrative agency decision under the court’s inherent constitutional power” – so the decision to enter into the lease without a separate environmental review is in her jurisdiction. While the port contends that Foss hosting vessels from the Shell Arctic-drilling fleet would not be a change from the long-permitted use of Terminal 5 as a “cargo terminal,” the judge noted the coalition’s quoting of “Vessel Berth Moorage and Provisioning” in the port briefing memo for the aforementioned January 13th commission meeting, and wrote in today’s ruling, “These activities appear to be qualitatively different than Eagle Marine Services’ previous use of Terminal 5 as a marine container terminal.” (That was the terminal’s tenant before T-5 was shut down last summer in anticipation of the modernization project.) So the judge has granted the coalition’s request for a “writ of review” – a type of legal procedure explained here.
ADDED 4:36 PM: We’ve received comments from the Port and from Foss. First, from the Port via spokesperson Peter McGraw:
The ruling today is only a preliminary step in this matter. The judge’s ruling does not prevent Foss Maritime from continuing to use the terminal as described in the lease. Nor does it conclude that the port or Foss have failed to comply with any law. It does direct the parties to prepare a record so that the court can review the port’s compliance with SEPA. We look forward to providing this information to the court. The port continues to be committed to fully comply with any and all requirements and regulations.
And from Foss via spokesperson Paul Queary:
We are confident that our use of Terminal 5 will be in compliance with its current permit, and we will show that in court.
According to Foss, 101 people are currently working “on various jobs” at T-5, and 63 more are doing related work at Vigor Shipyard. (We noted the latter in our coverage of last week’s Port Commission hearing.)
(From Port presentation last year regarding T-5 modernization)
While the Port of Seattle‘s interim lease for West Seattle’s Terminal 5 has been in the spotlight lately, a comment period quietly opened for your chance to have a say on a decision related to its future beyond that or any interim use. A nearby neighbor flagged us on this, wanting to make sure you know before it’s too late to comment.
Here’s what’s happening:
The Port says it has decided that its modernization plan for Terminal 5 (first covered here last June) does not need an environmental-impact statement, and for those who have something to say about that, it’s accepting comments until 4 pm Monday (March 23rd). Read the Determination of Non-Significance notice that neighbors received, here or below:
This 42-page Port document, the State Environmental Policy Act “checklist,” explains why they don’t believe a full environmental review is needed. It also says the work is expected to start early next year.
Some neighbors say they plan to comment about expected impacts including increased carbon emissions and noise, especially the long-running issue of train noise, which they expect will increase as “more trains will be needed to offload the super-container ships.”
As noted in the document embedded above, you can comment by e-mailing SEPA.p@portseattle.org by the Monday afternoon deadline – but be sure to include a postal-mail address. Again, this is separate from and not related to the “interim lease” for part of T-5, except that some of this work – which could cost up to a quarter-billion dollars, the port says – would overlap with that lease, which covers a third of T-5.
Quick FYI in case you had blocked out the date for the Port of Seattle‘s free “West Seattle Working Waterfront” boat tour next month, promoted by port reps at several community-council meetings recently and mentioned in our subsequent reports: We got word today that it’s been postponed. Port events manager Mary Jean Stephens says it’s been rescheduled for the morning of September 19th; registration information will recirculate during the summer.
(Terminal 5, photographed today from SE Admiral area)
Three weeks after the last cargo ship called at now-closed Port of Seattle Terminal 5 in West Seattle, the resulting stretch of empty space continues to catch attention, and we’re still getting questions about why it’s empty. In short, if you missed previous stories: The port closed it and plans to “modernize” it to handle the huge new ships that are coming on line in the cargo industry, though it has not finalized plans for how to fund the full nine-digit price tag that project will cost.
Today, a new development – the Port Commission will be asked for approval next Tuesday to sell Terminal 5’s six cranes, which it says would have to be replaced anyway. The item on the agenda for next week’s commission meeting includes a memo that also surfaces a timeline for the modernization project, saying, “The objective of this effort is to design and build a facility capable of handling two EEE class vessels by mid-2018.” The cranes that Port management wants to sell were purchased in the 1980s, and appraised as worth up to $3.75 million, according to the memo, which adds, “With the direction to modernize Terminal 5, and as there are no other open Port terminals where the cranes could be utilized, it is desirable to sell the cranes while they are fully functional and have current certifications.” It also warns that the market for used cranes is “slow” and that if they don’t sell within six months, staff will come back to the commission to “obtain authorization to dispose of them in accordance with Port procedures, including paying to have the cranes dismantled and scrapped.”
The commission’s Tuesday meeting is at noon at Port headquarters (2711 Alaskan Way) and includes one other item related in part to modernization – authorization of $1.5 million to cover half the cost of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study on possibly deepening its west and east waterways to accommodate larger ships.
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