PORT TOWNSEND — A decision on a state order that would give the go-ahead to Port Townsend paper mill’s proposed biomass facility could be decided by the end of the month after public comments are considered, the state Department of Ecology said.
“We won’t make a final determination on the project until all the public comments are logged in and answered,” said department spokesperson Kim Schmanke.
The state Department of Ecology will decide if it will issue a “notice of construction” order that would clear the way for the cogeneration project using wood chips.
About 100 people have commented on the project, both during an Aug. 17 public hearing at Fort Worden State Park and in writing.
The project, in which the mill’s main boiler would be converted to use waste wood from the Olympic Peninsula, is intended to generate “clean” power while cutting most emissions — although slightly increasing two — and providing enough electricity to sell.
Ecology issued a finding in July that the biomass project, which the mill expects to begin constructing by the end of the year, has no probable significant adverse environmental impact.
The proposal has generated both support and opposition, with supporters saying that it will generate needed energy and create jobs.
Opponents feel that it will add to pollution and deplete natural resources, as the facility would require waste materials that are needed to replenish the forests from which it is removed.
Schmanke acknowledges that research about the process is yielding new material, but that Ecology’s ruling will be based on whether the facility will operate within existing legal guidelines.
Currently, she said, Ecology staff is busy cataloguing public comments and preparing answers.
The agency will not respond to individuals, but will prepare aggregate answers to each topic, she said.
When the answers are complete they will be posted online and each person who commented will be notified by e-mail.
In the meantime, the state Department of Natural Resources is preparing a study keyed to each region, estimating how much forest waste, or slash, can be taken away from a forest without depleting resources.
That report will not be finished until mid 2011, said DNR spokesman Aaron Toso.
The report “will tell us how much biomass can be safely removed.” Toso said.
This report will not be available prior to Ecology’s ruling as to whether the Port Townsend facility can go ahead.
Several opponents of the mill project spoke during a public comment period at Monday’s county commissioners’ meeting.
At the meeting, Commissioner David Sullivan thanked those commenting but said that any determination about the project “was a state issue.”
________
Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.