Green Apple Renewable Fuels, LLC (Green Apple) is proposing to build a renewable fuels facility to be co-located at the Phillips 66 refinery near Ferndale. The facility would process fats, cooking and vegetable oils, and grease into renewable fuels.
We’re at the start of the environmental review process. This occurs before any decisions are made on permits Green Apple will need to build and operate the plant. This review is done under SEPA, the State Environmental Policy Act.
We're working with Whatcom County as co-lead agencies on the environmental review for this proposed project. The co-leads are responsible for completing a fair, thorough, and transparent environmental review of this project.
Determination of Significance and start of scoping for an Environmental Impact Statement
The co-leads reviewed all the project information and issued a determination of significance. This means the project is likely to have adverse significant environmental impacts and an environmental impact statement (EIS) is required. The co-leads will study the impacts and determine how they can be reduced or eliminated through mitigation. The results of this study and proposed mitigation will be outlined in the EIS.
The first step in this process is called scoping. The co-leads are asking the community, tribes, and stakeholders for input on what should be studied and how.
Public comment period and meetings
The co-leads are holding a public comment period from Jan 16 – Feb 18, 2020 in order to get community, tribal and stakeholder input on:
- The scope of the EIS. The co-leads are looking for comments about what should be studied, what methods should be used and what mitigation should be considered. Review SEPA and project documents under the "Project documents" tab below.
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The notice of application (NOA) is for the Whatcom County major project permit. Permit decisions won’t be made until after the EIS is completed but comments will be accepted on the application.
Review master project permit documents.
Ecology and Whatcom County will host three meetings in early February to share basic information about the project. Ecology and Whatcom County staff will be available to answer questions and speak one-on-one with the public and gather input on the EIS scope. The meetings will be an informal open house format. Ecology and Whatcom County staff will give a short presentation at 6:15 p.m. Following the presentation, staff will be available at discussion tables to take comments and answer questions until 8 p.m.
Please see our SEPA FAQ webpage to learn more about the environmental review process.
Like no other state, Washington aspires to grow communities in balance with natural resources. SEPA is Washington’s State Environmental Policy Act and has helped achieve this balance for the past 50 years. It aids management of the needs of the economy while protecting natural resources and quality of life.
SEPA outlines a process for identifying and analyzing potential environmental impacts associated with government decisions. These decisions may be related to issuing permits for private projects, constructing public or private facilities, or regulations, policies, and plans.
The SEPA review process is a “look before you leap” approach that helps agency decision-makers, applicants, and the public understand how the entire proposal will affect the environment. SEPA requires government — including Whatcom County and Ecology — to take environmental factors into consideration before making decisions on proposed projects.
Local and state governments use science and objective data to evaluate thousands of projects every year. The process is straightforward. A lead agency evaluates the proposal and determines the level of impact it will have on the environment. This will dictate the level of environmental review. The lead agency then makes a formal decision called a threshold determination for the project in one of three categories:
- Determination of Nonsignificance — The project is not likely to have significant adverse environmental impacts.
- Determination of Mitigated Nonsignificance — The project could have significant adverse environmental impacts, but measures (mitigation) can be taken to avoid, reduce, or eliminate those impacts.
- Determination of Significance — The project will likely result in significant impacts. The lead agency begins the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) process. An EIS provides the public and lead agency a more thorough review of the project than what’s typically submitted in the SEPA checklist.
Every proposed project undergoing a SEPA environmental review is looked at on a case-by-case basis. The time necessary for an EIS review varies greatly and depends on the complexity of the proposal. It can range from 6 months to 120 months, with an average EIS taking 28 months.
The environmental review process helps agencies and the public identify potential impacts to people and the environment that might result from a project that requires a permit or other agency decision. It also helps agencies identify actions that can be taken to help protect people and the environment from project impacts.
The SEPA review process looks at a wide range of potential impacts including natural resources (plants, animals, water, etc.) and built environment (traffic, noise, etc.). The SEPA process identifies potential environmental impacts and options for reducing those impacts. An environmental review must be completed before a project can be permitted.
State law requires that Ecology be designated as lead agency because this is a proposal to “construct facilities on a single site designed for, or capable of, storing a total of one million or more gallons of any liquid fuel not under the jurisdiction of EFSEC.” EFSEC is the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council. They reviewed the project and determined that they were not the appropriate lead agency.
Ecology asked Whatcom County to co-lead the SEPA process because of the county’s local insight and perspective. It’s important for the state to consider local issues and conditions when making a decision that will impact communities. Subject matter experts at both the county and state levels will review and offer feedback on the project documents. The co-leads will make joint decisions.
Scoping is the first step in the process of developing an environmental impact statement or EIS. After a lead agency (or co-lead agencies) issues a determination of significance, they will decide what impacts should be studied, how they should be studied, what alternatives should be considered, and what mitigation should be required. This analysis will be summarized in an EIS.
A public comment period is required for the scoping process. The co-lead agencies ask the public, other agencies, and tribes to assist in identifying which elements should be studied and how. The co-leads are also interested to hear ideas for mitigation and project alternatives. This information will be used to help develop the scope of the EIS.
Concerns identified during the scoping process can be further evaluated when a draft EIS is being prepared. It's usually easier and more effective to comment during the scoping process than wait until the analysis of a draft EIS.
Comments can address:
- If the proposal is clearly described.
- Which elements of the environment should be studied, such as air quality, water quality, fish and wildlife habitat, transportation systems, etc.
- Reasonable range of alternatives (identification of an alternative site or approach that achieves the proposal objective).
- Extent of study and analyses that are needed to understand impacts.
- Measures to avoid, minimize, and mitigate or offset effects of the proposal.
Several opportunities for public involvement are built into the EIS process. The first is scoping, where the public can weigh in on what the co-leads should study in the EIS. The co-leads will hold an extended comment period and public meetings as part of this process. A second public comment period will be held for the draft EIS. The co-leads will consider all public input before finalizing the scope of the EIS and the EIS itself.
A list of the anticipated permits and decisions is included below. After the SEPA environmental review is completed, permit decision-makers will use the information to help them decide if permits should be granted, conditioned or declined.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers:
- Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 404 Individual Wetland Permit
- CWA Section 404 Nationwide Wetland Permit (for geotechnical investigation)
Washington Department of Ecology:
- CWA Section 401 Water Quality Certification
- Coastal Zone Management Consistency Certification
- National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Construction Stormwater General Permit
- NPDES Industrial Stormwater General Permit
- Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) Permit
- State Waste Discharge Permit
Northwest Clean Air Agency (NWCAA):
- Notice of Construction (NOC) Air Permit Application and Order of Approval
Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife:
- Hydraulic Project Approval (HPA) for temporary barge landing (to facilitate off-loading of large, process equipment/vessels and/or equipment modules)
- HPA for work within ditches/streams at the proposed mitigation site
Washington Department of Natural Resources:
- Authorization that proposed activity is consistent with current aquatic lands lease
Whatcom County:
- Major Project Permit Application
- Natural Resources Notification of Activity (for geotechnical investigation)
- SEPA Threshold Determination
- Land Disturbance Permit
- Commercial Building Permits
- Fire System Permit
- Solid Waste Handling Permit (for spent filter aid) authorization for landfill or digester
- Revocable Encroachment Permits (for new road access point to Lake Terrell Road and temporary barge landing)
- Shoreline permit (for temporary barge landing)
- Moving Permit (for temporary barge landing)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency:
- Risk Management Plan (RMP) associated with storage of renewable propane
- Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) waste registration number and generator status
- Fuel and Fuel Additive producer Registration System Part 79 registration
- Renewable Fuel Standards producer registration and “pathway” applications for each proposed feedstock. Includes third-party engineering review
Final permit decisions cannot be made until the SEPA process is completed and a final EIS is published. SEPA documents are considered by agencies when making permit decisions.
The purpose of an Environmental Impact Statement or EIS under SEPA is to fully understand the project’s probable, significant, and adverse environmental impacts, and then determine if these probable impacts can be mitigated. The EIS document will provide a comprehensive and objective evaluation of those impacts, reasonable alternatives, and mitigation measures that would avoid or minimize impacts.
The EIS is not a decision. It’s not a permit and it’s not an approval for the project to move forward. An EIS is a requirement before permit approval and provides decision-makers important information to consider in making project decisions.