Today, the Washington Department of Ecology released three environmental studies intended to help developers, regulators, Tribes and the public make early decisions about siting and operating large-scale onshore wind and solar energy facilities, and also green hydrogen production and co-located battery energy storage plants in Washington.
In 2023, the Washington Legislature passed a law designed to make siting and permitting clean energy projects in the state more effective and efficient. The law directed Ecology to take steps including developing programmatic environmental impact statements so local and state permitting authorities have a head start when they evaluate a clean energy project proposal.
Ecology worked with state agencies, energy developers, Tribes and other groups to identify common issues, impacts and challenges associated with wind, solar and green hydrogen energy projects. The studies capture the likely significant impacts and potential ways to offset those issues so permitting authorities can focus on a specific project’s unique aspects and impacts.
The broad statewide assessments are not intended to make any decisions about whether a specific project should be built, or to replace local permitting oversight. On the contrary, all three studies recommend developers engage local and state regulators, Tribes and communities early in the process. Ecology developed a toolkit to help developers and regulators identify issues and concerns before an application for a project is submitted.
“Washington already has one of the cleanest energy grids in the nation,” said Ecology Director Casey Sixkiller. “But we need to continue expanding that clean energy capacity to meet future needs and reduce carbon pollution. These new environmental reviews will help us do that, while also working to respect Tribal rights, protect the environment, and honor community input and interests.”
Washington law requires the state to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 95% by 2050. To meet this mandate, the state needs to shift from fossil fuel-based energy to clean sources of electricity such as wind and solar.
In addition to the environmental studies for onshore wind, solar and green hydrogen facilities, Ecology’s clean energy coordination team developed a new optional coordinated permitting process to make project reviews and permits more efficient and consistent.
Ecology and the Washington Department of Commerce lead a group of 13 state agencies working together to continue improving clean energy planning, siting and permitting. The Clean Energy Siting Council shares information and develops recommendations to make siting and permitting more effective and timely.