Pre-Application Public informational meeting

NOTICE OF INFORMATIONAL PUBLIC MEETING

FEBRUARY 6, 7, and 8, 2024

Description of Proposal: On December 20, 2023, the Washington State Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) received a request from Cascade Renewable Transmission, LLC (CRT; Applicant) to conduct a pre-application review of the Cascade Renewable Transmission Project. The project is proposed within both Washington and Oregon. It is a 320 or 400-kilovolt [kV] high voltage direct current (HVDC) energized to 1,100-megawatt (MW) electric transmission facility interconnecting the existing Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) Big Eddy substation located near The Dalles, Oregon (Eastern Interconnection), and the existing Portland General Electric (PGE) Harborton substation located in Portland, Oregon (Western Interconnection). From the interconnections, the cable bundle would be buried underground in Oregon to the edge of the Columbia River on each end and buried in the bed of the Columbia River in Oregon and Washington. Most terrestrial Project components, including all visible structures, are proposed in Oregon. The terrestrial Project components in Washington includes approximately 7.5 miles of underground buried cable to bypass the dam, locks, juvenile fish passage, and tribal fishing areas at the Bonneville Dam. Approximately 79.5 miles of cable would be buried in the bed of the Columbia River. Approximately 33 of the 79.5 in-river miles will be on the Washington side of the river in various locations.

In accordance with WAC 463-61-050, the proponents have prepared a “pre-application plan”. The pre-application plan is a document which provides the project overview; provides information on the applicant; identifies the location, size, and capacity of the project; highlights coordination with agencies and stakeholders; describes a tentative schedule; and contains a public participation plan.

Proponent: Cascade Renewable Transmission, LLC

Open House: 5:00-5:30 pm each evening. The Applicant and EFSEC staff will be available to answer questions about the Project and the EFSEC review process.

Informational Public Meetings: February 6, 7, and 8, 2024 from 5:30pm – 7pm.
As required by RCW 80.50.090 (1) and WAC 463-26-025, EFSEC will hold a series Public Informational Meetings on this request for a pre-application review, one meeting in each county the proposed transmission line passes through. At this meeting, EFSEC Staff and the Applicant will introduce themselves. The Applicant and EFSEC staff will then make presentations.

Meeting Location: The Public Information Meetings will be held partially in person AND virtually via Microsoft Teams.

February 6: Mountain View Grange #98 located at 1085 N Main Ave, White Salmon, WA 98672
Recording for the February 6, 2024 Klickitat County Pre-App Info Meeting

February 7: The Black Pearl located at 56 S 1st St, Washougal, WA 98671
Recording for the February 7, 2024 Clark County Pre-App Info Meeting

February 8: Hegewald Center located at 710 SW Rock Creek Dr, Stevenson, WA 98648
Recording for the February 8, 2024 Skamania County Pre-App Info Meeting

Please review EFSEC’s public meeting rules on our website: Public Meeting Ground Rules

You may attend the meetings via Microsoft Teams online or via phone at:

• https://bit.ly/CTP-Pre-AppInfoMtg
• Phone number +1 564-999-2000 Conference ID: 152734735#

State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Lead Agency: EFSEC

SEPA Threshold Determination: No SEPA threshold determination will be made based on the pre-application review. A SEPA threshold determination will be made by the SEPA responsible official (the EFSEC Director) after the Application for Site Certification is deemed complete. This requirement is to determine whether an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is required prior to considering a recommendation for site certification. The threshold determination will be made based on the probable project impacts identified in the information presented in the ASC. A threshold determination of non-significance (DNS) or mitigated determination of non-significance (MDNS) may be issued if the SEPA responsible official determines there will be no probable significant adverse environmental impacts or impacts identified can be mitigated. An EIS is not required if a DNS or MDNS is issued.

For information regarding the Project please contact Maria Belkina, EFSEC Siting Specialist at (360) 515-2017. If you have special accommodation needs or need language translation services to provide your comment, please contact EFSEC staff at (360) 664-1345 or send an email to efsec@efsec.wa.gov.