In business few things are more important than the bottom line. That is why it is somewhat puzzling that proponents of coal shipping continue to push forward with plans to increase thermal coal exports from the US via BC.
Fraser Surrey Docks received its approval last summer from Port Metro Vancouver to build a $15-million facility on the Fraser River to reload four million tonnes of coal from trains rolling up from Wyoming, but it has yet to begin construction. It is estimated that the project could be in operation by mid–2016.
When BC Supreme Court ruled against Voters Taking Action on Climate Change’s push to quash coal storage expansion on Texada Island, it upheld the government’s decision at the end of March to go ahead. However, this was not the only court challenge the company is facing over the controversial project. Another case, this one filed by Fraser Surrey Docks, disputes Metro Vancouver’s jurisdiction over regional air quality on port lands which are regulated by the federal government. The case is not set to be heard until June, and was filed to challenge a $1,000 fine the company received from Metro Vancouver for excessive dust emissions from its grain handling facility. Observers are watching this case closely saying that it could set precedents for future air quality issues.
Opponents of the project continue to raise concerns about the effect the coal dust will have on water and air quality and its impact on climate change. Thermal coal is not used for making steel. Instead, it is burned to fuel electric generators in China and India. Coal-fired electrical plants have been shut down in North America due to the amount of greenhouse gases they emit.
The thing is, the market for thermal coal in Asia is collapsing. Demand in China for imported coal is steadily declining as the government attempts to move the country’s electrical generators to hydro-electric generation, a more sustainable, less polluting means. Global prices for the coal have fallen steeply over the past few years losing more than half their value since 2011. And in India, the second largest importer of the coal, the government announced last November that it would be ending its thermal coal imports within the next two to three years over climate change concerns.
With falling global prices and weak demand in Asia for the coal, one wonders if the project will actually go ahead considering all the challenges facing the bottom line.
