Amador County – The Amador County Board of Supervisors asked about curbing impacts of the Buena Vista Biomass Power plant on Tuesday, and ultimately decided impacts would be worth approving the permit and related documents.

Consultants discussed the Subsequent Environmental Impact Report, approved by the Amador Planning Commission, and answered questions. Supervisor Richard Forster, whose District 2 would house the reopened plant, asked for clarification of “Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction.” He said it appeared in several areas of the SEIR that the main issue of avoiding the Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction system was “because it was much more costly to install and operate.”

Consultant Doug Brown, who wrote the technical portions of the SEIR for his company, Ascent Environmental, said it “wouldn’t be appropriate to use the SNCR.” He said a comparison was made to a coal-burning facility in Illinois, but using SNCR in Amador, would not compare.

Gary Jakobs of Ascent said the system planned to be used at Buena Vista “will meet those very strict standards.” Forster asked if it “would not provide enough benefit” and was that, a reason for it not being used? Jakobs said there would not be a “substantial change in environmental conditions” with use of the more expensive system.

Forster said he found “it really hard to insinuate in an EIR” what the Center for Biological Diversity argued, that burning in a generator would be the same as open-air burning. He said the Power Fire released pollution in three weeks, was equivalent to more emissions in Amador County than had been released “in the last 10 years.”

Supervisor Chairman John Plasse pointed out a section of the EIR that said the Biomass Power plant would burn “residual” trimmings and would not use “merchantable timber.” Plasse said “an economically viable way to thin the forest” is “very appealing.”

Plasse said a reforestation process used after the Angora Fire was the same as proposed by the Buena Vista plant, and criticized by the Center for Biological Diversity. Plasse said “you can’t have it both ways.”

Supervisor Louis Boitano asked about Ascent’s findings on open burning, and reductions expected regionally, with opening the Buena Vista plant. Jakobs said The findings were based on conversations with the U.S. Forest Service.

He said the Forest Service undergrowth is largely burned, and if not burned, but left on the forest floor, you “do have the potential, for a catastrophic fire.”

Jakobs said the EIR did not try to address a new issue of whether biomass power plants are “carbon neutral,” and did not look at the “lifecycle of a tree” and the “sequestered carbon.” Jakobs said “we took a very neutral view to the issue of carbon neutrality.” He said all they wanted to do was “present the facts as best we can.”

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