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An oil train leaves the Bakken oil fields after being loaded near Epping, N.D. North Dakota's capacity to ship oil by rail has jumped with increased production.

(ASSOCIATED PRESS/RANGELAND ENERGY)

The

's commission this morning endorsed building the largest crude oil terminal in the Northwest this morning. The vote was 3-0.

North American oil train traffic has spiked in recent years as hydraulic fracturing mining techniques have captured more domestic oil. Increased production in North Dakota's

has driven a surge in crude transfer projects proposed for the Northwest.

The largest is in Vancouver. Tesoro, an existing tenant, wants to team with Savage Services to build a terminal capable of shipping up to 360,000 barrels a day, including six storage tanks with a total capacity of 2.25 million barrels. The oil would arrive by train and be shipped to 19 West Coast and British Columbia refineries, including five owned by Tesoro. The oil trains would run through the Columbia River Gorge and close to downtown Vancouver.

Before this month, safety concerns had focused on spills, with crude oil not thought to be explosive. That shifted on train filled with Bakken crude rolled into the town of

. It derailed, exploded, leveled more than 40 buildings and killed 42 people at last count.

Environmental groups and other opponents of shipping oil through the Northwest encouraged the Port of Vancouver to wait until the investigation of the disaster is done before moving forward.

Tesoro officials have said that Washington's Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council, which will review the project, will address safety issues in depth.

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee also has to approve the project.

– Scott Learn