State council preparing to expand clean energy project, per Inslee's request

The state Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council is moving forward with potential changes to the certification agreement for the Horse Heaven wind farm project after Gov. Jay Inslee sent it back requesting it be expanded.

The main contention between the council and Inslee is that the proposed certification agreement for the project would have significantly reduced its size and scope due to environmental protections, particularly for historic hawk nest sites. In his May 25 letter, Inslee recommended the use of alternative mitigation options to allow wind turbines to be built closer to these sites.

The council is now preparing to vote on a revised certification agreement that would, among other things, reduce the buffer zone between these historic hawk nest sites from two miles to one kilometer. It would also revise the buffer zone between wind turbines and Webber Canyon down to a mile; earlier this year the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation identified the area as a traditional cultural property and raised concerns about the placing of wind turbines near it.

Under the proposed change, an additional 107 wind turbines would be located in that area.

Among those to vote against the potential changes was Lenny Young, who represents the state Department of Natural Resources on the council. Specifically, he opposed the one-kilometer buffer zone for hawks, arguing it wasn’t an appropriate distance to apply to habitat sites.

He told colleagues at their Wednesday meeting that “I have a great concern that restoring 107 turbines to the landscape would increase the project footprint and would have a big impact on Yakima combination traditional cultural properties.”

Inslee's push for a larger project scope stems from state efforts to decarbonize Washington's energy sector.

The council’s next meeting is in August.