Construction of one of the largest methanol refineries in the world is proposed on the bank of the Columbia River in Kalama, Washington. This refinery will also require construction of a major new natural gas pipeline.

The plant will:

• Consume 32,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas each day (more than the amount consumed by ALL of the existing natural gas power plants in our state)
• Consume 5,000,000 gallons of water each day (drawn from groundwater that is sourced from the Columbia River)
• Manufacture as much as 10,000 metric tons of methanol per day The methanol will be shipped to China and used to manufacture olefins which are in turn used to manufacture plastic.
• The resulting plastic will be shipped back to us and other nations as finished products.

Development plans are well underway- all required permits have been issued. The critical shoreline permit is currently being appealed, and construction cannot begin until this appeal is settled. This project has been marketed as “environmentally friendly” because China currently manufactures olefin using coal and proponents state that using an LNG feedstock would “be cleaner”.

However, it’s more likely that this refinery will simply add to the total amount of methanol being manufactured and not replace any existing coal-based methanol production. Refinery developers also plan to market their methanol as a “low carbon” product because the refinery would consume electricity derived from the Northwest’s wind, solar, and hydropower resources. Low-carbon electricity used by the refinery would no longer be available to other consumers like PUDs that have committed to low-carbon electricity use.

Furthermore, this plant will greatly increase Washington State Greenhouse Gas emissions.

Governor Inslee has maintained an open mind regarding this project and his office is currently surveying the opinions of his constituents on this issue. Please tell Governor Inslee that you support his commitment to implementing the Paris Climate Accords and are therefore asking him to reject the Kalama methanol refinery and associated pipeline.