ELLA hosted a community forum for Sunnyside residents on November 30th to inform them of the proposed biomethane plant supported and developed by the City of Sunnyside, Port of Sunnyside and Pacific Ag of Oregon. The city, port and Pacific Ag did little to communicate with residents about the project or any environmental impact as a result of the project. No effort was put forth to inform our Spanish-speaking community. This has us and residents very concerned. Residents have a right to understand all of the environmental and economic implications of living next to a biomethane plant.
After canvassing the neighborhoods closest to the proposed biomethane plant, we asked residents who are concerned about the project to attend a community forum to address their concerns directly to representatives from the city, port and Pacific Ag. The city chose not to attend or respond to residents. The executive director, Jay Hester, attended but chose to listen only, not respond. Harrison Pettit of Pacific Ag provided an overview of the project.
Residents had many questions for Mr. Pettit and were upset about not being properly informed about the development of the biomethane plant. Most of the residents present live close to the proposed area and are concerned about their family’s safety, the impact the project will have on air and water quality, the possibility of diminishing property values due to the placement of a biomethane plant near their homes, and the possibility of a plant explosions. These are all legitimate concerns and they must be addressed by the city, port and Pacific Ag.
We are asking the City of Sunnyside to use a third-party entity to conduct an objective and thorough SEPA Review and provide an Environmental Impact Statement based on that review. We are currently in a public comment period, expiring at 5pm on December 5, 2023. We are asking residents to submit their public comments to Trevor Martin, the City of Sunnyside Community and Economic Development Planner at tmartin@sunnyside-wa.gov before 5pm on December 5th.
We are providing the videos for the Sunnyside Community Forum on the Sunnyside RNG/Pacific Ag project. If you have any questions about the public comment period, please contact Maria@WeAreELLA.org.
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