Pipeline spill plan worries Washington state officials

Canada’s approval of Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline is raising concerns with Washington state officials, who say they have not received adequate assurances that U.S. waters will be protected in the event of an oil tanker spill.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee’s office says he doesn’t have enough details of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s pledged $1.5-billion Oceans Protection Plan to know if enough spill prevention measures will be in place, or that the state would be protected in the event of a spill.

“The governor has been very clear that safe transport of crude oil across the Salish Sea requires robust oil spill planning and response including the necessary equipment to locate, contain and recover sinking/submerged oil,” said Tara Lee, a communications officer for Inslee.

“We do not have enough detail yet that this plan will address our concerns.”

The planned pipeline also faces opposition from Seattle politicians who, like their counterparts in Vancouver, are opposed to any expansion of the oil industry. It has also generated promises of court fights by First Nations on both sides of the border.

Any tanker export of Canadian oil from Kinder Morgan’s Westridge terminal in Burnaby must thread through island-strewn U.S.-Canadian waters in the Strait of Georgia and the Strait of Juan de Fuca, collectively known as the Salish Sea.

In September, before Trudeau announced his oceans protection plan and his approval of the Kinder Morgan project, Washington’s Department of Ecology sent a letter to Ottawa raising concerns over the NEB’s approval of the pipeline and its view that the imposition of 157 conditions was inadequate.

“Ecology remains concerned that the NEB-proposed conditions for oil-spill prevention, preparedness and response will not adequately protect our shared waters,” said Dale Jensen, the department’s program manager of spill prevention, preparedness and response.

Kinder Morgan has met with Washington state officials over several years and has worked to resolve their worries, said Ali Hounsell, a Trans Mountain spokeswoman. Although the company now has approval to build the pipeline, that consultation will continue, she said.