PLEASANT POINT – They are members of the Passamaquoddy Tribe. They are environmentalists. They care deeply about their land and the ocean.

And they both are in favor of the LNG facility.

Tribal Councilor Dale Mitchell and former tribal Lt. Gov. Eddie Bassett work for the tribe’s environmental department.

Mitchell and Bassett were skeptics when the plan to build a $400 million LNG terminal on the reservation was proposed last year. They worried about what impact it would have on their culture, but, more important, they feared for the environment.

After doing their own research, they changed their minds and now favor a proposal to build a facility at Gleason Cove.

“I didn’t say no, and I didn’t jump on board and say yes,” Mitchell said when the idea was proposed. “So there were a number of questions I had in order to build my comfort level, and it took quite a while.” He said he searched the Internet for information.

Mitchell and Bassett last year also were part of a Passamaquoddy group that toured the LNG plant in Louisiana. They were impressed. “There were two tanks there,” Mitchell said. “The tanks were about 400 yards from the road. There was a main highway that went right in front.”

Bassett said he taped the tour and a ship coming in and put it on tribal public access television. He said he would make a copy of it available to other communities for their public access channels.

“I still have some concerns … whether there will be smoke or noise or water issues, which I understand is not going to be all that much,” Bassett said. “I want to make sure we have adequate standards for protecting the environment. But as far as LNG is concerned, I am not concerned about any spills. I am not concerned about safety or environmental impacts of it. I am convinced it is safe.”

Some opponents have expressed concern about the visual aspect of giant tanks sitting next to the bay.

Passamaquoddy Bay wraps around the tiny reservation. A causeway that is part of Route 190 separates the bay and the reservation. On one side of the road is the Beatrice Rafferty Elementary School, the Health Center, housing for the elderly along with a small village of homes. The Public Safety Building, Youth Center and more homes are on the other side of Route 190.

Plans call for two tanks to be built near Route 190 next to the tribal office. The tanks are large enough to hold two 747 aircraft one on top of the other.

“I would like to try to visualize 400 years ago when my ancestors saw those boats coming in with the big sails, what was on their minds?” Mitchell asked. “They probably said there goes the damn neighborhood.” Mitchell was referring to 1604 when French explorers sailed into Passamaquoddy Bay and settled on St. Croix Island.

Bassett said he was not concerned about the aesthetics because the tanks will be there for only two generations, or about 50 years. “I want to compare that with 500-plus generations that the Passamaquoddy have been in this region, so in comparison it’s like the blink of an eye,” he said.

The former tribal lieutenant governor said that change was part of life. “To me it is about the economic survival of the Passamaquoddy Tribe. No one else is going to help us. We have to look at a way to try to help ourselves,” Bassett said. “So there are some compromises that I think we have to take into consideration and part of that is the aesthetic view.”

Quoddy Bay LLC, the developer, has suggested local artists paint pictures on the tanks to minimize the visual impact.

Mitchell predicts if the facility isn’t built at Pleasant Point, it will be built somewhere in Washington County. “And the tribe will be sitting back on its haunches saying, ‘Well, we still are on the outside looking in,'” he said. “I think we have to figure out a way to embrace change … it is all just part of progress.”

Bassett’s message to opponents?

“When you take an objective look at it, things are not as scary as everyone says,” he said. He urged people to look at all the facts before making up their minds.