This is the News

April 10, 2009

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Oregon Court of Appeals re-affirmed its motion to dismiss an appeal brought by opponents of the Bradwood Landing project. Project opponents had asked for reconsideration after the court had dismissed – on its own motion – an appeal by opponents to a recent Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) decision.

 

According to Court documents, petitioners failed to provide proof of mailing as required by Oregon law. On its own motion, the Court dismissed the judicial review as untimely filed. Oregon case law says there is no way to cure the problem if the appeal is not filed in a timely way, effectively ending any further appeal of the issues already determined by LUBA.

 

Yesterday’s dismissal represents another setback to opponents’ publicly stated strategy to challenge the Bradwood project through legal and procedural delays.

 

“The Court’s decision moves our project closer to providing additional jobs and a much needed
economic boost to Oregon as well as providing the additional supplies of clean, affordable energy the Northwest needs,” said Joe Desmond, senior vice president of external affairs for NorthernStar Natural Gas, the developer of Bradwood Landing.

 

On March 20, 2008, the Clatsop County Board of Commissioners approved Bradwood’s consolidated land use application on a 4-1 vote after a nine-month public process. On April 15th, the Board approved a variance to the County’s code for upgrades to enhance the safety of the terminal access road for the public, including first responders, employees and local residents. Project opponents later challenged these County decisions before LUBA.

 

On January 7th, 2009, LUBA issued a decision that rejected 21 of 23 arguments raised by project opponents. Two items were remanded to the Clatsop County to be fixed and LUBA also upheld the County’s variance decision to allow road improvements.

 

“LUBA’s decision did not overturn or reverse the County’s approval of the project,” said Desmond. “A remand is not uncommon in a complex project such as Bradwood. Because the issues are definitional in nature, we remain confident they will be resolved in a timely manner. “Bradwood Landing continues to work closely with the states of Oregon and Washington to process our permits,” said Desmond. “We have always anticipated legal challenges to the permitting process and have factored them into our plans.”

 

In addition, since the Oregon Court of Appeals original dismissal of opponents’ appeal, the District of Columbia Circuit Court issued an opinion in a case that could influence the State of Oregon’s pending appeal before the Ninth Circuit Court of FERC’s certificate order for Bradwood Landing.

 

As reported in the Longview (WA) Daily News, “On March 13, the D.C. circuit court of appeals dismissed a complaint filed against FERC by the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. The suit alleged that FERC improperly issued a permit for the proposed Crown Landing LNG terminal in 2006 – before Delaware had gotten a chance to consider Clean Air, Clean Water and Coastal Zone permits for the project. The D.C. court said the state hadn’t been harmed when FERC issued its license because Crown Landing would have had to secure the state permits before it could break ground. NorthernStar faces nearly identical arguments in lawsuits brought this year in the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals by environmental groups and agencies in Oregon and Washington.”

 

The Bradwood Landing LNG terminal and its associated 36.3 mile pipeline would provide a new source of natural gas directly into the Oregon and Washington natural gas market. It would create more than 450 jobs over three years of construction and 65 permanent jobs while contributing more than $7.8 million annually in taxes to Clatsop County. In addition, the terminal will spend more than $30 million in annual maintenance and operations, much of that locally.

 

A regional analysis of the effects of increased natural gas supply from a Columbia River LNG terminal by University of Oregon economist Dr. Phil Romero, showed that Bradwood could reduce the wholesale cost of natural gas by 13 percent and support the creation of between 5,100 and 20,300 jobs.

 

For a downloadable pdf of the official decision from the Oregon Court of Appeals, click here.

 

For a downloadable pdf of Bradwood Landing's press release, click the icon below.

 

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