The Port of Portland in the early 1980s embarked upon a plan for a coal terminal at what is now the port’s Terminal 4. Seattle-based Sightline Institute, citing a 1984 report in the Oregonian, notes how the port entered into a 25-year lease with a group called Pacific Coal to export coal to Asia. But after $25 million invested, the project was scuttled in 1983 after demand from Asia proved not to be so robust. For many, history is repeating itself. Read more.
The 1984 report referred to in the article appears unavailable; however, more information is available at: http://daily.sightline.org/2011/09/12/gambling-on-coal-and-losing/
