Boehnke disagrees with Inslee’s decision on Horse Heaven Hills project
By Dan Thesman on Monday, June 3rd, 2024 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
OLYMPIA – Sen. Matt Boehnke (R-Kennewick) is disappointed in Gov. Jay Inslee’s rejection of a recommendation from regulators to shrink the size of the proposed Horse Heaven Hills Wind Farm, which risks the protection of the endangered ferruginous hawk.
Boehnke said he and other community members have concerns about the project beyond the impacts on the hawks.
“I recognize that Washington State will need more energy in the next decade or two, but a project of this size creates several challenges for the area,” Boehnke said.
The Horse Heaven project includes constructing up to 222 wind turbines along 25 miles of hillsides outside the Tri-Cities. The project also includes three plots for solar arrays covering up to 5,447 acres.
In April, the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council recommended reducing the project’s scope due to concerns over ferruginous hawk nests found in the area. Inslee has now asked EFSEC to retool its mitigation requirements within 90 days, allowing for a project with fewer safeguards.
“Inslee ignored the petition and the council’s recommendation to appropriately calibrate the project,” Boehnke said. “I think the people of the Tri-Cities have spoken and think the project raises major questions about the impact our community.”
In October 2023, a local opposition group, Tri-Cities CARES, sent a petition to Inslee stating that the wind farm was too large and poorly sited, would harm wildlife and cultural resources, create public safety concerns, and negatively impact recreation, tourism, and regional economies.
“The full project would be like having over 200 Space Needles scattered across the hills of the region and would occupy thousands of acres,” Boehnke said. “Besides harming the nests of ferruginous hawks, the project doesn’t account for the cultural resources important to local tribes or the safety hazard of wildfires that can’t be extinguished without using aerial equipment. These concerns should be addressed if the project is going to move forward. I’m disappointed that the governor doesn’t seem to care.”
