When operational, Ferndale’s Intalco aluminum smelter exceeded safe emission levels of sulfur dioxide, a respiratory risk, in the region. Now, the State Department of Ecology (DOE) wants the public to weigh in on its plan to reduce emissions if the plant resumes operations.
Short-term exposure to sulfur dioxide can make breathing difficult and harm the respiratory system, particularly in children, the elderly and those with preexisting breathing conditions, like asthma, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
In December 2020, just eight months after the smelter was curtailed, the EPA designated a 4.5-square-mile radius around the site that did not meet national air quality standards for sulfur dioxide due to smelter emissions between 2017 and 2019. Since then, Intalco, the DOE, the Northwest Clean Air Agency, current smelter operators and potential buyers have worked to develop a plan to curb emissions during operations.
According to the proposed plans, the plant will need significant modification to produce “permanent and enforceable reductions to SO2 emissions” at the facility, including the installation and operation of a sulfur dioxide emissions control system. The plant will also need to merge existing stacks and increase the height of the merged stacks, as well as limit facility-wide and unit-specific sulfur dioxide emissions.
The plan also includes stipulations and contingencies if the plant restarts before April 2025.
Though the facility has been curtailed since 2020, talks to restart the smelter remain ongoing as Blue Wolf Capital Partners, a private equity firm, hopes to purchase the plant from Alcoa, the current owners. The plan: to restart the plant as a “green” smelter, returning more than 700 jobs to Whatcom County.
Hurdles remain, though, including housing and employment challenges, outstanding administrative orders from the state government and finding a low-cost power deal.
Talks to restart the smelter have slowed, as Blue Wolf considers “cutting their losses,” according to a recent Washington Post article.
The public will be able to comment on Ecology’s proposal online or by mail until Oct. 15. The department will also host a community forum via Zoom at 6 p.m. on Oct. 11. Register for the community forum here: https://waecy-wa-gov.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZAod-yrpzoqE9zOkBc7ODXy-Va1eyCHuifX
A previous version of this story misstated when sulfur dioxide emissions were occurring. The emissions occurred while the plant was operational, but not since curtailment. The story was updated on Sept. 8 at 11:20 a.m. Cascadia Daily News regrets the error.
