The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has denied and halted the permitting process for the $700 million Gateway Pacific Terminal project in Washington State because of objections by the Native Americans of Lummi Nation based on their land and fishing treaty of 1855.
The Gateway Pacific Terminal in Cherry Point, Wash., was intended to be one of the largest U.S. ports for export of coal to markets in Asia. SSA Marine and Cloud Peak Energy planned to ship coal by rail from Montana and Wyoming over BNSF to the new port proposed by Pacific International Holdings LLC, and claimed thousands of jobs would be created. Environmental and community groups raised questions of rail grade crossings, train frequencies and sustainable development.
Ultimately, Corps Seattle District Commander Col. John Buck ruled on May 9, 2016 based on the Lummi Nation’s land rights:
“I have thoroughly reviewed thousands of pages of submittals from the Lummi Nation and Pacific International Holdings. I have also reviewed my staff’s determination that the Gateway Pacific Terminal would have a greater than de minimis impact on the Lummi Nation’s usual and accustomed rights, and I have determined the project is not permittable as currently proposed.”
The Lummi Nation signed the Treaty of Point Elliot in 1855, which established the Suquamish Tribe’s Port Madison, Tulalip, Swinomish, and Lummi reservations and guaranteed fishing rights in perpetuity at each tribe's’ Usual and Accustomed (U&A) fishing areas. The GPT project area is included in their U&A fishing area.
Gateway Pacific Terminal planners may alter their proposal to address the Lummi Nation’s land rights, though the Army Corps of Engineers concluded their release with this caveat: “If in the future the Lummi Nation withdraws its objections to the proposal, the proponent could reinitiate processing of the application. A number of other tribes have expressed concern about effects of the proposal on their treaty rights, so if processing of the application resumes, consultation with those tribes would occur as needed to collect information and make decisions with respect to effects of the proposal on their rights.”