Reevaluate decisions that hamper WA’s clean energy future

Passage of the Clean Energy Transformation Act in 2019 was a historic event and a testament to improving the health of the planet and communities right here in Washington. Public and private sector stakeholders have made herculean efforts to move this ambitious energy transition forward and achieve a carbon-free economy for future generations of Washingtonians.

The ingredients are in place for success, but one glaring problem has flown under the radar in recent media coverage and deserves much more public attention.

The issue is simple — the only way to stop burning carbon is to build new clean energy projects at an unprecedented scale and scope in every corner of Washington. The challenge is the work of an unknown but critically important agency, the Washington Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council, currently laboring under the complexity and growing list of projects coming to its door for review. If the council cannot accelerate its reviews and clarify council deliberation procedures, we will move backward in meeting Clean Energy Transition Act requirements, discourage investment and good jobs, and increase ratepayer costs.

The evaluation council must embrace its role as a catalyst for change to a clean energy economy. EFSEC must assess potential impacts while finding balanced, science-based solutions that maximize renewable energy benefits while safeguarding our environment. Put simply, EFSEC has failed to do so.

Unfortunately, for the Horse Heaven Clean Energy Center — the largest renewable project in state history and actively covered by The Seattle Times — EFSEC is making poor decisions that will jeopardize project viability and set dangerous precedent for additional clean energy projects that our future depends upon.

As an example, EFSEC is setting a “new policy” without extensive policy guidance or peer review for ferruginous hawks. I am particularly shocked by the council’s mitigation that requires a two-mile buffer around hawk nests, with many inactive for years, and banning activity year-round, rather than using best available science for a workable solution. The Environmental Impact Statement for the project does not call for this level of protection, as no data-based need exists.

No state (including ours) or federal regulation mandates such protections. This decision alone eliminates over half the project’s wind turbines and sets a terrible precedent for many others. EFSEC should reevaluate this decision and institute protections more consistent with science, the EIS, and that reflect other state and federal regulation that successfully protects this species without dramatic buffers. The council has also relied on an outdated wildlife movement model, leading to elimination of 5,200 square miles for renewable energy development.

As a former Congress member who championed the Endangered Species Act and other conservation causes, I understand the unique balance that must be struck to protect our fish and wildlife while enabling responsible development. I learned early the importance of following best available science for making decisions on project mitigation measures while responsibly developing our natural resources.

When science is ignored and the need to strike an appropriate balance is not met, the results can be devastating, and we see that now in EFSEC’s handling of the Horse Heaven project.  My concerns are not just about this project, but the impact on our ability to meet Clean Energy Transformation Act requirements and the chilling signal to other clean energy investments in Washington.

Beyond EFSEC’s flawed process for this vital project, I am alarmed by the council’s seeming inaction toward the imminent impact of climate change to our world and state. The council’s decisions show little consideration that we must quickly build a remarkable amount of renewable projects to meet our energy needs and reduce our dependence on carbon-based sources.

I respectfully call upon EFSEC to provide strong leadership, reconsider many of its preliminary decisions and use the environmental impact statement and science to develop a viable Horse Heaven project. Time is not our friend in our fight with climate change.