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Big Oil threatens Lochsa River corridor
7/6/2010 |
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Your help is needed to send a strong message that the Lochsa River and Highway 12 can't be sacrificed for greater oil company profits.
Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil Canada is proposing to turn the Lochsa River corridor into a "High & Wide" transportation route to move massive loads of machinery from the Port of Lewiston to the Tar Sands in northern Alberta.
Idaho Transportation Department and Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil Canada recently hosted a round of public meetings in Moscow, Lewiston and Kooskia to "provide information and take comment" on their proposal, but it remains to be seen the extent to which public input will affect the agency's decision.
Please also consider one or more of the following actions:
* Send comments to Idaho Department of Transportation by July 14 by following this link.
* Sign this online petition, which calls for denial of permits by ITD.
* Write Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter by clicking here.
To get a better understanding of the scale involved with these proposed loads, the typical semi truck weighs 80,000 pounds and runs approximately 90 feet in length. The proposed large loads will weigh up to 580,000 pounds and be up to 200 feet in length. Additionally, the proposed loads will cover the entire width of Highway 12 with zero clearance in the narrow sections of the roadway and be up to 30 feet in height.
Moving these loads will require closing Highway 12 with a "rolling roadblock" that will greatly inconvenience local residents and the many people who recreate in the corridor. Further, traffic delays caused by this project could prove life-threatening due to increased response time by emergency services.
Currently, these loads are shipped from Asia through the Panama Canal to Texas, then trucked north to Canada over an existing route. Now, in an effort to reduce shipping costs and boost profits, Big Oil proposes to move 207 loads over highway 12 in a nine-month period starting later this year. Reportedly, other oil companies are watching this effort as they develop plans to move even greater numbers of loads over the next few years. |
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1-800-574-7481 | info@idahorivers.org | PO Box 633, Boise, ID 83701 | This site created and donated by
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