They cited large turnouts to the scoping meetings for the change.

The enormous community interest has caused the co-lead agencies – the US Army Corp of Engineers, the Washington Department of Ecology and Whatcom County – to hunt for larger rooms.

The hearing will be held in the Washington State Convention Centre Ballroom on December 13.

The agencies have started a lengthy environmental review of the Gateway Pacific Terminal project at Cherry Point.

That terminal is proposed to ship 54 million tons of dry bulk commodities – mostly coal.

The review will include a study of environmental impacts, including human health effects related to the building and operation of the terminal facilities and BNSF Railway’s Custer Spur modifications.

The analyses will provide an assessment of whether measures could be taken to avoid or minimize those environmental impacts.