By Janice Podsada
Herald Writer
EDMONDS — Legislation sponsored by State Rep. Brian Sullivan, D-Mukilteo, would require local permission to site an essential public facility if it does not comply with the area’s comprehensive plan.
House Bill 2340 is in the Rules Committee, said D.J. Wilson, a Washington Tea Party board member. The citizens group is opposed to the proposed Brightwater wastewater treatment plant being sited in Edmonds.
"The House Bill is progressing," Wilson said. "We’re hoping it will get to the floor next week."
A similar Senate Bill sponsored by Sen. Paull Shin, D-Edmonds, died in committee.
In Edmonds, opponents of Brightwater, King County’s planned third treatment plant, argue the facility does not fit in with the city’s plans for the proposed site.
For years, Edmonds has earmarked the Unocal site as a potential transportation hub for commuters traveling by ferry, bus or railroad, Mayor Gary Haakenson said.
He has said the two facilities cannot co-exist: a treatment plant does not belong next to a transportation hub.
Wilson’s stance is that state law gives King County Executive Ron Sims too much power in the decision.
"We don’t have a problem with Brightwater being built in Snohomish County. We’re just asking that they work within the comprehensive plan," Wilson said.
In addition, Snohomish County residents have not had adequate representation in the siting process, which began two years ago, Wilson said.
Last year, seven Brightwater candidate sites were chosen for consideration, two of them in King County.
In the fall, Sims chose two Snohomish County sites, in the Bothell/Highway 9 area and Edmonds, to undergo the final evaluation phase, an extensive environmental review. Sims is to make a final decision in early 2003.
Wilson said Sims should not have the overarching authority to site a facility in another county.
"It’s as if the state of Idaho sited a public facility in Washington," he said.
But Elaine Kraft, a member of the King County executive’s staff, said that’s a faulty comparison because of the role King County plays.
"Currently we provide wastewater treatment for parts of Snohomish County," Kraft said. "It is therefore our responsibility to continue to provide wastewater treatment to ensure high water-quality standards."
The Brightwater Siting Advisory Committee, which has acted as an advisory panel to Sims and other King County officials, has 23 members; 16 are Snohomish County citizens.
But Wilson said the committee hasn’t provided adequate local representation because it lacks real political power.
"If the advisory committee had had a real voice, I think the outcome would have been very different."
You can call Herald Writer Janice Podsada at 425-339-3029 or send e-mail to podsada@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
