Toilets, windmills among Stephanie Turlay's complaints to council

Stephanie Turlay, the would-be First Lady of Vancouver, was among the speakers Monday at the Vancouver City Council.

She first criticized the “premature action by some on this council,” referring to the majority who have come out in opposition to the proposed Tesoro-Savage oil terminal at the Port of Vancouver.

Councilors Bill Turlay and Alishia Topper, with Mayor Tim Leavitt, have all said it’s too soon to make an informed decision.

“I believe EFSEC (Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council) should be allowed to do its investigation before any decisions by this council is made,” Stephanie Turlay said.

She said we live in a community where information is withheld by the local newspaper, which only publishes articles that suit its position. (She must have missed this story on safer rail cars, this story about Tesoro-Savage officials addressing concerns, this story quoting an expert saying oil leaks aren’t a concern, this story about a study showing a low likelihood of derailment, this story with the port director saying safety is No. 1 priority, this guest opinion by Arch Miller, this guest opinion by Todd Coleman …)

Wait. Where was I? Oh yes, quoting Stephanie Turlay’s claim that The Columbian won’t publish anything that goes against its editorial board’s views.

Turlay then shared her disdain for the Sierra Club and how it has “pushed its way” into the debate over whether Vancouver should be the site of the largest oil-handling facility in the Pacific Northwest.

“Environmentalist hysteria has given us toilets that barely flush, washing machines that barely wash, light bulbs that don’t give adequate light, ethanol that ruins the gaskets in our cars, windmills that kill our eagles and don’t give enough energy and solar panels which have trouble in our cloudy Northwest,” she said. “Plus a plethora of rules and regulations designed to force us to live by what they believe to be the right way.”

Turlay said she too has concerns about safety, and wants to hear what Tesoro-Savage has planned to that end, but said the city needs the jobs.

Maybe she should look at today’s newspaper, which has right on the front page, above the fold, a story by Aaron Corvin and Eric Florip headlined, “Oil execs ask for delay of judgment.” It includes the fact Port of Vancouver commissioners “received full details of a rail safety study that finds a very low likelihood of a train derailment on tracks beside a $1.3 billion waterfront development project.” Online, there’s a link to the presentation about the safety study.