POV-rail-cars-east-2011VANCOUVER, Wash. –The Port of Vancouver USA Board of Commissioners will meet Tuesday, June 11, to attend to routine port business, including the approval of minutes and the payment of vouchers. Open session begins at 9:30 a.m. in the Commission Room at the port’s administrative building located at 3103 NW Lower River Road, Vancouver.

Immediately following the regular meeting, a workshop will be held to update the commissioners on rail operational issues, including the roles and responsibilities of various entities associated with the transport of hazardous materials. Representatives from the Federal Rail Administration and BNSF Railway will be in attendance to provide information to the commissioners and answer questions.

The rail operations and safety workshop is the second in a series tied directly to the April 22 announcement of plans by longtime port tenant Tesoro to construct and operate a crude oil facility at the port. In a joint venture with the logistics company Savage, Tesoro is proposing to bring North American crude oil to the port by rail where it would then be transferred to marine vessels for transport to refineries in such places as California, Washington and Alaska. The first workshop in the series occurred on May 14 and focused on marine safety and oil spill response capabilities. A third workshop on the permitting process associated with the proposed facility is tentatively planned for Thursday, June 27. Additional scheduling details will be made available on the port’s website as they are confirmed.

The purpose of the workshops is to provide information to the commissioners as they prepare to consider a lease with the Tesoro-Savage Joint Venture. It is anticipated that the proposed lease will come before the commissioners in July of this year. As always, commission workshops are open to the public and interested parties are welcome to attend.

For those community members not able to attend Tuesday’s meeting, it will be televised live on CVTV (cable channels 21 and 23) beginning at 9:30 a.m. In addition, it will be archived later in the day on the same website for future viewing. A link to the program, as well as a link to the May 14 workshop on Marine Safety and Oil Spill Response, also will be available on the port’s website at www.portvanusa.com.

 The Port of Vancouver USA is one of the major ports on the Pacific Coast, and its competitive strengths include available land, versatile cargo handling capabilities, vast transportation networks, a dependable labor force and an exceptional level of service to its customers and community. For more information, please visit us at www.portvanusa.com.

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