TOPPENISH, Wash.- The proposed Goldendale Energy Storage Project received a water quality certification from the Department of Ecology on May 22, giving the project requirements and recommendations to manage the site as it continues.
The energy storage project would be constructed at Juniper Point in Klickitat County, better known as Pushpum to the Yakama Nation, which translates to “the mother of roots.” The project site would take over an area that includes historic sites, ancestral villages and traditional food-gathering spots for the Nation.
“Environmental justice means protecting our sacred areas from international development,” said Yakama Tribal Council Chairman Gerald Lewis in a press release. “The state has laws for environmental protection, but today those laws did not stop this destructive project – it will become another industrial energy site, like Hanford or the dams that consume water needed by the salmon, it will destroy ancestral Yakama village sites, and it will restrict gathering access for our traditional foods and medicines.
The press release added that the project would impact Swale Creek and cost over 10,000 acre-feet of water in 10 years.
A Tribal Resources Analysis Report prepared by the DOE agrees with the water cost. In addition, the report found a “significant and unavoidable adverse impact” on tribal land in every project phase.
The Energy Storage Project sits atop the Mid-Columbia Economic Development District’s Top 10 priorities for 2023, calling it a “key industry sector impact and potential to open huge economic development opportunities regionally.”
If completed, the facility will address renewable energy that can provide enough power to 500,000 homes.
Ecology only found resource issues regarding tribal impact. The project had no adverse consequences, with only 0.8 acres of wetlands and streams permanently impacted. The Final Environmental Impact Statement did not require mitigation from any agencies to reduce the effect.
The owner of the Goldendale Project, Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, has a contract with Klickitat PUD to buy water lost in evaporation. The PUD and Klickitat County will allow CIP to take over the water right designated for the former aluminum smelter that was once on the property.
The remnants of the smelter will cost a $10 million investment to prepare the land before construction.
If the project continues, construction will begin in 2025, and operations will start in 2028.
The water quality certification from Ecology alone does not allow the project to continue moving forward: Ecology and other agencies still need other permits and licenses before construction begins.
The Yakama Nation said they hope to keep its natural resources found on Pushpum protected by advocating against the construction of the Goldendale Pump Storage Project.
“In the Treaty of 1855, the Yakama Nation reserved rights to hunt, gather, and fish across our usual and accustomed areas,” said Chairman Lewis. “Today, our People still exercise these rights and practice the traditional and ceremonial teachings that are deeply connected to Pushpum.”
