It’s not if, but when. For decades, Portland politicians, scientists, and activists have known our region—which spans the Cascadia Subduction Zone—has been long overdue for a massively destructive earthquake. Often, those clued into the looming quake will pause when speaking about the damage that will come if it occurs, then reflexively correct themselves: When the earthquake hits.
As in: When the earthquake hits, thousands of seismically unsound buildings will collapse. Portland’s drinking water supply will be cut off. Most of the city’s bridges will crumble into the Willamette River. There might not be any way to safely dispose of human waste.
And: When the earthquake hits, Portland could be the site of the largest oil spill in the history of the world.
That threat is thanks to the Critical Energy Infrastructure Hub (CEI Hub), a six-mile strip of land in Northwest Portland—bordered by Northwest St Helens Road and the Willamette River—that is home to at least 10 fuel storage terminals owned by companies like Chevron, BP, and Kinder Morgan. With a combined storage capacity of 360 million gallons, the hub is home to 90 percent of Oregon’s fuel supply. This congregation of heavy tanks is located on a liquefaction zone, an area of soil prone to liquify, sink, and expand after an earthquake. When the quake hits, the hub’s heavy fuel tanks could easily come unmoored, spilling their contents into the Willamette and possibly setting Forest Park ablaze.
