We all deal with a little bit of risk every day. When will the big earthquake hit? Will a drunk driver swerve our way? Will the river temps be so hot we can't fish? There's only so much we can do about most of the big risks in life.

But salmon face a huge, new, and needless risk from the oil companies that want to export America's volatile shale oil reserves down the Columbia River to compete with OPEC on the global energy market.
 

The proposed Vancouver Energy oil export terminal would be the largest oil terminal in the nation - capable on initial build to export 400% of the oil that the entire state of Oregon consumes every day.
 

The risk of a Valdez-style oil tanker disaster is only one of the risks our salmon face. The unconventional shale oil that's fracked out using solvents is much more volatile than the conventional crude we normally consume from Alaska. The risk of train derailments caused by failed brakes, landsides, or vandalism takes on a whole new level of concern when the blast zone is thousands of feet on either side of the rail line.
 

With the oil tankers on the river, the Coast Guard warns that "Security Zones" stretching form bank to bank, escorted by armed USCG patrol, will "identify friend or foe" from every boater on the water. On a hog-line, trolling, trying to get home, or trying to land a fish, there will be some version of a "showing your license and proof of registration" every time one of the tankers goes by.
 

Not your cup of tea to invite all this risk for oil they're not even going to sell to us? Well join the Steelheaders on January 5th at the Clark County Fairgrounds for the only public hearing on this proposal west of Spokane. Or comment online. Want to know more and get even more involved? Contact our office, 503-653-4176, and we'll loop you in.