Milwaukee port starts shipping petroleum, raising concerns

MILWAUKEE (AP) — Petroleum is being shipped out of the Port of Milwaukee this spring for the first time in at least a decade, raising environmental concerns.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports that the liquid cargo pier recently received a $3.6 million upgrade that allows it to move ethanol and petroleum products.

U.S. Oil loaded its first shipment of 100,000 barrels of ethanol last month. The distributor is a subsidiary of U.S. Venture, which distributes oil, ethanol, lubricants, tires and auto parts.

Cheryl Nenn works for the Milwaukee Riverkeeper, an environmental group. She says the group wants to ensure the proper precautions are taken to transport ethanol safely.

U.S. Venture spokesman Alison Fiebig says the company has been shipping ethanol from the port of Green Bay for six years without incident.

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Information from: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, http://www.jsonline.com

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