More and more legislators at city, county, and state levels understand the dangers of the CEI Hub. The combined voices of neighborhood associations, and a growing network of community organizations in and beyond the Portland metro area are making a difference. Please join us by staying engaged –
· Portland: CEI Hub Policy Project to amend the Comprehensive [land use] Plan and zoning code related to the CEI Hub. Public involvement opportunities upcoming in Aug-Sept.
· Oregon: CEI Hub bills failed in 2025 session. Plans to reintroduce in 2026 session. PLUS: public comment window open on the Risk Mitigation Plan for PGE’s Beaver Generating plant in Columbia County. Still pending: DEQ’s decision about Zenith’s Air Contamination Discharge Permit.
A bit more on each of the above
Portland CEI Hub Policy Project
The Bureau of Planning and Sustainability [BPS] will release draft proposals for amending the city’s zoning code and Comprehensive Plan as they relate to the CEI Hub in Aug-Sept. We are happy to report some encouraging progress –
· BPS is consulting with community advocates, including the CEI Hub Task Force, as it develops draft proposals. BPS is also consulting with local and state agencies, technical experts, labor, and industry reps.
· BPS responded to advocates’ demands for meaningful community engagement by creating a Portland CEI Hub Policy Project website and a project timeline that includes community outreach and feedback in late summer and early fall (Aug-Sept). We’ll let you know when this phase launches!
· BPS is currently including (almost) all dangerous fuels – both fossil & renewable fuels- within the scope of the proposed policy amendments.
We remain concerned that —
· BPS contemplates waivers that would allow expanded and new storage of certain types of dangerous fuels and toxins in the unstable CEI Hub zone
· The draft proposals do not restrict the CEI Hub zone from becoming a transloading gateway for fuel export to Asia and other destinations.
è What Can You Do? Schedule a CEI Hub presentation to learn more about this project. AND Let your City Councilors and the Mayor know that flammable, combustible, or toxic materials don’t belong on the CEI Hub’s unstable soils.
State
1. None of the CEI Hub bills passed. Like many other bills, the CEI Hub bills were held up in the Joint Ways & Means Committee as the legislature struggled to pass a transportation package. Community advocates are already making plans advocate for CEI Hub action in the next session.
è What Can You Do? Urge your State Representative and Senator to support CEI Hub bills. For more information, talking points, and a link to find your state Rep. and Senator, see our still-relevant 2025 CEI Hub Fact Sheet & Call to Action
2. DEQ public comment period on Risk Mitigation Implementation Plan [RMIP] for PGEs Beaver Generating Plant on the Columbia River, Columbia County. This facility is regulated by DEQs Fuel Tank Seismic Stability program that encompasses all the CEI Hub facilities. PGE is only the second of seventeen regulated facilities to submit a required RMIP. This is an opportunity for the public – YOU – to let DEQ and the CEI Hub facilities know that we are paying attention, and want maximum protection and safety, sooner rather than later.
è What Can You Do? Submit a written comment to DEQ in general support of PGE’s RMIP, but urging DEQ to require an enforceable, benchmarked timeline for completion of the RMIP. See DEQs public notice for links to where to submit a comment, and to the 3-pg RMIP.
LEARN MORE
May we talk with your group? Round 2: CEI Hub Task Force Presentations focus on the status of legislation and land use planning for the CEI Hub, renewable fuels, and more.
Contact us at: CEI Hub Task Force: ceitaskforce@gmail.com OR hit reply (nikki.mandell@gmail.com )
Aug. 5: Quake Night at the Park, sponsored by Lloyd EcoDistrict. Picnic, preparedness fair, and outdoor screening of “Rumblings: Preparing for Cascadia”
Rumble on the River Community Forum: Topic – CEI Hub and Public Policy. Late August date TBA.
Stay tuned.