FERNDALE, United States – Dozens of community members gathered on the banks of the Nooksack River in Washington state on Saturday to voice their concerns about the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.
A Bellingham-based environmental organization released a statement Sunday, along with photos showing protesters in front of the pipeline that crosses below the river.
Those in attendance were given the opportunity to voice their concerns to the state’s Department of Ecology about the 64-year-old segment of the Trans Mountain pipeline known as the Puget Sound pipeline.
Eleanor Hines of the group, RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, says the Puget Sound region does not have an emergency response plan that addresses spills of heavy crude oil.
Washington State’s ecology department opened a public commenting period on the pipeline after the Canadian federal government bought the Trans Mountain project from Kinder Morgan Canada.
The period ends Aug. 25.
Note to readers: This is a corrected story. A previous version misspelled the name of the Nooksack River.