What is the CEI Hub & the Policy Project?
The Critical Energy Infrastructure (CEI) Hub is comprised of 630 fuel storage tanks spread across a six-mile stretch of land in northwest Portland along the Willamette River. The area serves as a hub for the storage and distribution of liquid fuels that provide 90% of Oregon’s liquid fuels (e.g. gas, diesel, jet fuel, etc.) and is located on earthquake vulnerable soil.
The City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) is proposing updates to the Comprehensive Plan and zoning code to regulate bulk fuel facilities in the Critical Energy Infrastructure (CEI) Hub. In December, the Planning Commission held hearing on the draft proposal.
If you did not get a chance to comment on the CEI Hub Policy Project before the holidays, you still can! The Planning Commission opened the comment period again. From Tuesday, January 13th to Friday, January 23rd, you can send in a comment or add to the comment you already submitted. You can find the link to our talking points document HERE.
We have an opportunity to tangibly reduce the dangerous health and safety risks of the CEI Hub by providing written comments.
You can find the link to the CEI Hub Policy Project here:
- Bureau of Planning and Sustainability CEI Hub Policy Project Proposed Draft
- CEI Hub Policy Project Homepage on the City of Portland website
CEI RESOURCES:
Talking Points for Public Hearing
Sample Testimony
Join us at the Pre-Public Hearing Rally & Submit Testimony
CEI Hub Public Hearing & Rally
➡️ Register to testify in person or remotely (testimony limited to 2 minutes) HERE
*DEADLINE is Monday, December 15th, at 5:00 p.m.*
➡️ Submit your written testimony HERE (through the Map App)
*DEADLINE is Friday, December 19th, at 5:00 p.m.*
CEI Hub Health and Safety Risks Fact Sheet
WHATS THE SITUATION?
Portland faces a historic choice—one that will determine our city’s safety and environmental legacy for generations. You need to make sure your voice is heard!
The Critical Energy Infrastructure (CEI) Hub, a six-mile stretch of fuel tanks along the Willamette River, sits on soil likely to liquefy in a major earthquake. A disaster here could cause massive fires and spill millions of gallons of fuel into the river and neighborhoods. The stakes are averting what would be the biggest industrial disaster in US history.
What is being proposed by city staff:
- Prohibit increased capacity for liquid fuel storage tanks at the hub, including fossil fuels, renewable fuels, and sustainable aviation fuels;
- Limited transfer of in-service or fuel related storage capacity between existing bulk terminals;
- A 20% drawdown of “total in-service fuel and fuel related storage capacity” by 2036;
- An allowance for new transloading infrastructure expansions if there is a “public benefit” which is not defined and left to staff discretion.
What is missing / needs to change:
- There are sizable loopholes and weak standards that need to be tightened/strengthened to prevent unintended future expansions;
- The proposal does not call a just transition for impacted workers, frontline communities, and nearby residents;
- The proposal should call for periodic review of whether existing fuel storage activities comply with natural hazard mitigation plans, climate goals, and other safety standards;
- The proposal needs to prescribe a more aggressive drawdown schedule to ensure safety aims are met and align with the Oregon Dept. of Energy’s strategy for a 70% reduction in liquid and gaseous fuels stored at the hub by 2050;
- “Public benefit” needs to be defined to reflect actual public safety and community priorities and to prevent shenanigans.
Health Considerations:
2. An incident in the CEI Hub would release toxic air pollutants, damaging to our health and the environment. Petrochemicals contain chemicals such as benzene, toluene, and more. Burning petrochemicals produces several types of air pollutants, including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and particulate matter (PM2.5), all of which can have negative health impacts, such as shortness of breath, respiratory infections, blood diseases, and cancer.
3. The CEI Hub stores many hazardous, flammable, and combustible fuels. In the event of an earthquake or another catastrophic event, the release of fuels is likely to cause explosions and fires, posing immediate threats to people on-site at CEI Hub facilities and nearby communities. What makes matters worse is that containment and suppression may not be possible in the aftermath of the earthquake because of limited emergency response resources.
4. According to a study conducted by ECONorthwest, in the event of an explosion, "between 0 to 7 people could be killed and 2 to 80 people could be injured. The range of costs for mortality and morbidity is between $49,000 to $74.1 million.”