The recent articles about the proposed oil terminal at the Port of Vancouver have not informed the people of the hazardous materials within the crude oil itself.
Chemicals and other materials used to withdraw the oil — many highly hazardous — are added to an already dangerous product. Prior to refining, the crude is allowed to sit in tanks (at tank farms) to help separate water and solids from the crude, and this creates a problem.
The water and solids that fall out of the crude need to be treated and processed. The refineries have “land farms” to bury toxic solids and spend thousands of dollars to clean water. Still, water sources polluted by crude production continue to grow in our nation.
Hopefully, the tank farm can be built elsewhere. The cost to our environment will be a loss of beauty for dollars. I’m a former refinery service tech.
