02-04-2002 Port of Houston Expansion Review Committee Minutes

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• DRAFT January 10, 2002 Mr. Kerry M. Stanley U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Galveston District Regulatory Branch P.O. Box 1229 Galveston, TX 77553-1229 Dear Mr. Stanley, On behalf of the City of La Porte, please accept, record, and file this letter as the City of La Porte's comments regarding the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed Bayport Marine Terminal. The City of La Porte appreciates the time and effort the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has given to study the permit application received from the Port of Houston. We recognize that the review was complex and voluminous. We also believe that the Port of Houston has made a genuine effort to understand some of the concerns raised by residents of East Harris County and the communities they reside in. Our City has participated with the work group developed by the Port Authority (Community Advisory Group) and has attended several public hearings and scoping meetings. The Port Authority continues to work in good faith with the Community Advisory Group in addressing elements of the DEIS and other issues raised during this process. However, it is the view of my Council and my community that concerns raised in the August 1999 position paper have been heard but not acted upon or resolved. Consequently, the City is opposed to the Bayport site, or any combination including Bayport, because we firmly believe the DEIS reinforces our concerns that this site would have substantial long term negative environmental impacts for our community. We would hope that before you consider issuing a permit for this location, you will follow all adopted procedures to insure the public's due process and interests are held at the highest degree of accountability. In addition, we would request that all issues raised during the scoping process, that may not have been analyzed in the current DEIS, be looked at diligently and reported in the final EIS along with all comments received on the DEIS. As a public, we have the right to know how our quality of life will change under circumstances we have no control over. We further believe that the applicant has a duty and stewardship responsibilities to the community that is not yet evident in their permit application.