Anti-LNG Group Calling for Election of Three New Port Commissioners to Protect Local Cities from Petrochemical Pollution

saveRGVfromLNG update including FEBRUARY 19 CANDIDATE FILING DEADLINE FOR MAY 7 VOTE ON 3 PORT OF BROWNSVILLE COMMISSIONER POSITIONS

~~~ URGENT SPREAD THE WORD URGENT SPREAD THE WORDURGENT ~~~

FEBRUARY 19 DEADLINE TO PROTECT

LAGUNA VISTA,

RAYMONDVILLE,

PORT ISABEL,

HARLINGEN,

SOUTH PADRE ISLAND,

SAN BENITO,

LONG ISLAND VILLAGE,

OLMITO, AND

BROWNSVILLE

FROM LNG, HIGHLY FLAMMABLE CONDENSATE TRAINS (TWO A DAY), AND EXPLOSIVE OIL TRAINS

BY ELECTING THREE NEW PORT OF BROWNSVILLE COMMISSIONERS MAY 7

CANDIDATE FILING DEADLINE FEB 19 (Call Deborah Duke, 956-831-4592 for details and required forms)

The Brownsville Navigation District, doing business as the Port of Brownsville, has been very quiet about the Feb 19 filing deadline and May 7 elections.  Our local news media has also been very quiet about all this.

LNG: The Port knew LNG was heading our way in 2012 but we didn't hear about it until 2014.  The Port is officially neutral about LNG but continues to help Annova LNG, Texas LNG, and Rio Grande LNG gain community support for their proposed operations at the Port.  The Port continues to defend LNG as safer than it is, using a UT Austin report funded by LNG and LNG-related companies.  The Port continues to tell us all to wait for and accept the decision of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission about whether or not these LNG operations can be built at the Port, even though FERC has a long history of finding some way to approve all such operations.  And even though a number of local towns and groups have shown great personal and political courage in officially opposing LNG -- including the cities of Laguna Vista, Port Isabel, South Padre Island, and Long Island VillageAND the Port Isabel school board (which turned down Annova LNG's request for a tax break).  See, for example "HOW INDUSTRY AND REGULATORS KEPT PUBLIC IN THE DARK AFTER 2014 LNG EXPLOSION IN WASHINGTON," Tarika Powell, 02-08-2016, Sightline Institute,http://www.sightline.org/2016/02/08/how-industry-and-regulators-kept-public-in-the-dark-after-2014-lng-explosion-in-washington/.

OUR BEST WAY TO STOP LNG?  Elect three new Port Commissioners who take the health, safety, and local economies of all the people here seriously as well as the growth and development of the Port.  Elect a Cameron County Judge and Cameron County Commissioners opposed to tax breaks for the LNG companies.  Attend the saveRGVfromLNG Brownsville meeting this Thursday evening (see below).

Centurion's Highly Flammable Condensate Trains:  Two trains a day, 120 rail tanker cars each, each filled with highly flammable condensate (a very light form of crude oil sometimes called "natural gasoline").  Centurion and Union Pacific have not been honest with us about the number of trains or the safety issues involved.  The health of those living along the track will suffer and their lives and property will be put at risk without them having any say so about any of this -- if everything goes the way Centurion, Union Pacific, OmniTRAX, and the Port wants them to go.  The trains will be running through Kingsville, Raymondville, Lyford, Harlingen, San Benito, Olmito, and Brownsville.  If there's a derailment and fire, the recommendation is to clear a 1/2 mile area in all directions around the derailment.  Most railroad lines carry no liability insurance to cover such accidents.  Even apart from such accidents, the fumes and exhausts from diesel train engines will increase the rate of cancers, bronchitis, and asthma among those living and working near the track.  For additional information, see:

"Oil Trains To Rumble Through Raymondville," Letter To The Editor, Raymondville Chronicle,02-10-2016, http://www.raymondville-chronicle.com/news/2016-02-10/Letters/Oil_Trains_To_Rumble_Through_Raymondville.html

"Our Rio Grande Valley is in danger," Letter To The Editor, 02-04-2016, Port Isabel South Padre Press, http://portisabelsouthpadre.com/2016/02/05/letters-to-the-editor-for-2-04-2016/

"US Lifts Crude Oil Export Ban," KRGV Channel 5 TV News, 01-07-2016, http://www.krgv.com/story/30913524/us-lifts-crude-oil-export-ban. 

"Environmentalists Voice Concerns about Oil Transport Company," Channel 5 News, 01-28-2016, http://www.krgv.com/story/31086471/environmentalists-voice-concerns-about-oil-transport-company.

"Port Concerns," CBS Channel 4 News, 02-02-2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-vo4vi7CwU&feature=youtu.be.

"Who pays if a crude oil train crashes? No mandates for rail insurance," Brian Nearing, 05-02-2015, Albany Times Union, www.timesunion.com/tuplus-business/article/Who-pays-if-a-crude-oil-train-crashes-No-6238612.php.

"There Will Be Blood - Oil Train Regulations Fail To Address Known Risks," Justin Mikulka, 01-17-2016, DeSmog, http://www.desmogblog.com/2016/01/17/there-will-be-blood-oil-train-regulations-fail-address-known-risks.

"Why Northwest Doctors Oppose Oil-by-Rail Development,"  Tarika Powell and Eric de Place, 09-02-2015, Sightline Institute, http://www.sightline.org/2015/09/02/why-northwest-doctors-oppose-oil-by-rail-development/.

OUR BEST WAY TO STOP CENTURION'S HIGHLY FLAMMABLE CONDENSATE TRAINS?  Elect three new Port Commissioners who take the health, safety, and local economies of all the people here seriously as well as the growth and development of the Port.  Convene a Council of Mayors to address the harm and risks their communities will suffer if this operation is allowed to move forward.   Attend the saveRGVfromLNG Brownsville meeting this Thursday evening (see below).

Explosive Oil Trains:  The Port of Brownsville is expanding its oil export capabilities.  This will invite explosive oil trains to follow Centurion's highly flammable condensate trains through all the communities along the rail line from Kingsville to the Port plus explosive oil trains from Mexico (crossing the new international railroad bridge on the edge of Brownsville near BISD's Veterans Memorial High School and the River Bend Resort and Golf Club retirement community).  The Port conducted a Public Hearing on Feb 4 on a $28 million bond deal that includes the building of a new oil dock and the repair of an old one (also called "Liquid Cargo Docks").  Because the Port was pretty hush hush about the hearing, only four members of the public attended.  The Port doesn't need a public vote on the deal.  In fact, on Feb 3 the Port Board authorized the Port Director & CEO "to enter into an agreement with Lanier & Associates Consulting Engineers, Inc. for engineering services on the Liquid Cargo Dock Repairs project" (Feb 3 Meeting Agenda).

OUR BEST WAY TO STOP THE EXPLOSIVE OIL TRAINS FROM HEADING OUR WAY?  Elect three new Port Commissioners who take the health, safety, and local economies of all the people here seriously as well as the growth and development of the Port.   Attend the saveRGVfromLNG Brownsville meeting this Thursday evening (see below).

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Thursday February 11 saveRGVfromLNG Brownsville meeting:

At the Galeria 409 Art Gallery, 409 E 13th Street, downtown Brownsville.

Everyone welcome.

Newcomer orientation at 6 pm, business meeting at 6:30 pm.

Visit saveRGVfromLNG on Facebook

Galeria 409 Art Gallery, 409 E 13th St, downtown Brownsville

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Galeria+409/@25.900019,-97.5000347,17z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m2!3m1!1s0x866f945eb26157c5:0xd60d532452e006b9