Previous efforts to develop dismantling operations
foundered over safety and environmental concerns
ASTORIA — A
company has proposed a shipbreaking operation at the Port of Astoria to cut
apart and recycle vessels, members of the port’s governing board revealed
before cutting short a public discussion.
The port’s
commissioners had a discussion of the proposal on the agenda for a Tuesday
meeting, The Daily Astorian reported .
The site is
at North Tongue Point, a former military facility that has been proposed before
for recycling vessels.
Commissioners
said the company approached it with the idea of take ships out of the water to
recycle the metal.
“It’s not a
project I’m really excited about, personally,” Commissioner Larry Pfund said.
Objections
to potential problems such as from hazardous materials used in ship
construction have thwarted previous shipbreaking projects in Oregon.
In 1999,
when the Division of State Lands owned North Tongue Point, a Seattle company
that was leasing part of the waterfront facility prepared it for a potential
military ship dismantling operation.
The plans
foundered after Sen. Ron Wyden urged the Navy and a federal agency not to award
contracts to bidders with significant worker safety and environmental records.
Seven years
ago, the state’s economic development agency recruited a shipbreaking operation
to Oregon, but under criticism from environmentalists and political rivals,
Gov. Ted Kulongoski withdrew the invitation. An aide at the time suggested the
state would take another look at a proposal if it involved taking ships out of
the water, a more expensive procedure.
The Daily
Astorian reported that shipbreaking has boomed recently, taking advantage of
the downsizing of older, unprofitable vessels in the hard-hit shipping
industry.
But the Port
of Astoria commissioners ended public discussion quickly Tuesday.
“I don’t
want to talk about it,” said Commissioner Floyd Holcom, reminding other members
that the port had a nondisclosure agreement with the company.
Efforts to
contact the company identified in commission documents as Portland-based Blue
Ocean Environmental were unsuccessful.
Source: register guard. 19 April 2013
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