The Everett School District has announced a plan to purchase 68 acres of land for future school construction in response to what it says is a need for three new elementary schools and a new high school by 2028. In site selection, the district says it considered wetlands, steep slopes, adequacy of the roadway system, proximity to the urban growth area, and potential access to future sewers, water, natural gas, and electricity as criteria for suitability for schools. The preliminary sites are comprised of a collection of properties in unincorporated Snohomish County near Mill Creek and adjacent to the existing urban growth area boundary. Before going any farther, the district needs to expand its criteria of suitability to include safety considerations for students and faculty.
These preliminary sites are bordered on the east by the Olympic Pipeline. In Bellingham in 1999, this pipeline burst and the ensuing explosion and fire killed three children. Nine other incidents have occurred in Washington state involving pipelines since that time. As well, a gas pipeline rupture near Carlsbad, New Mexico in 2000 killed twelve people, including five children. Most pipelines were originally installed in rural farmland but encroaching development now raises safety risks that land use management practices are now beginning to address.
In 2006, Washington State and the Municipal Research Council issued a report on land use planning in proximity to pipelines. This collaborative effort between state and local governments and the pipeline industry considered the potential consequences of a catastrophic pipeline failure and the need for careful thought in how adjacent lands should be used. In particular, the report stated that “Zoning of areas near pipelines should favor lower density developments such as agriculture, industry, warehouse, and single family housing.” The growing awareness of safety concerns has already sparked some communities to address this issue in their zoning ordinances. In Redmond, schools are considered “high consequence land uses” and are forbidden to be built near a hazardous liquid pipeline corridor. It is common sense that schools and pipelines don’t mix, and more comprehensive land use regulation can be expected. In the meantime, agencies should police themselves when common sense incompatibilities such as this arise.
In fairness, the district should be given the benefit of the doubt as proximity to a hazardous liquid pipeline was not one of the criteria it said it used in preliminary site selection. The school district may be unaware of this hazard. Other possible sites were identified in the district’s selection process that are not impacted by close proximity to this pipeline. The selection criteria should be widened by placing a new emphasis on student safety. Once built, schools will be there for a very long time and merely going to school to get an education should not also carry with it an avoidable risk from a hazard with lethal potential. Sites adjacent to a hazardous liquid pipeline are no place for schools and should be immediately disqualified.
Land purchases for new schools need to be driven by the expectation that when the time comes, school construction will be allowed on the selected site. A conditional use permit is required for school construction and even if land use ordinances at the time do not forbid it, approval should be far from certain for a school site adjacent to a hazardous liquid pipeline. Foreseeable problems as this should be avoided in the interest of student safety and efficient use of taxpayer funds. The public should urge the Everett School District to look for other, more suitable sites for possible new schools while they are available.
Dr. Eric Holmes and his wife have resided in Bothell for more than 25 years and are the owners of one of the properties targeted for acquisition for new schools by the Everett School District.
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