Amador County – The Amador County Planning Commission on Tuesday postponed a decision on final environmental documents and permitting for the Buena Vista Biomass Power plant.

The commission held a public hearing on the certification of the “Final Subsequent Environmental Impact Report” and considered “possible project approval for the Buena Vista Biomass Power use permit amendment” before continuing the decision to November 30th.

Buena Vista Biomass is “proposing the repowering and conversion of an existing 18.5-megawatt (lignite-fired) electric generation facility to a renewable wood waste biomass energy facility.”

County Planner Nate Lishman said the Commission directed staff to answer questions raised by the public in the hearing, and also questions brought up by individual commissioners. After the public hearing, the commission had substantial discussions and “directed staff to respond to key areas,” with noise and lighting being the “big ones.”

The commission directed staff to address comments received in seven letters that came during the meeting Tuesday. Letters came from several local Jackson Valley residents and also the Center for Biological Diversity, a national organization with a San Francisco office, which has been commenting on the Buena Vista Biomass Power plant’s attempt to reopen the plant on Coal Mine Road.

Lishman said the center was concerned with the biomass industry in general, with one of the big issues being that it is touted as a “carbon-neutral energy source.” Lishman said “that’s sort of partially true, so long as you are not harvesting timber specifically for fuel.”

He said the Center was concerned that there is not enough fuel to be gotten from the region’s forest management to fuel the Buena Vista plant, and it would be forced to close. The former Co-Gen plant similarly had to close in the early 1990s, he said, when it lost its ample supply of lignite.

The center is also looking at air quality and a state greenhouse gas analysis, which is “all so new,” Lishman said, and may be trying to set a national precedent with the Buena Vista plant. He thought the EIR preparer, Ascent Environmental, did a thorough job with the analyses.

Staff was directed to alleviate concerns and comments of the public, and also of commissioners, from their own review of the EIR. Lishman said: “Everything we have to date we will be able to respond to.”

There was also a letter from the applicant requesting changes to clarify the intent of mitigation in the Final SEIR.

The public hearing was closed during the meeting, and Lishman said it would be at Chairman Ray Ryan’s discretion whether the public hearing is reopened at the next meeting, 7 p.m. Tuesday, November 30th.

Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.