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PSE - LNG Facility Tacoma
Puget Sound Energy - LNG Facility Tacoma
Puget Sound Energy submitted an application for a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in the Tacoma Tide Flats. The site would include a new Total Ocean Trailer Express Marine Vessel LNG fueling system used to distribute to ships. Other potential uses for the LNG product were also identified, primarily marine fuel.
On March 29, 2019, the Agency published the Final SEIS (FSEIS) for this GHG analysis, The FSEIS documents include the review and consideration of the comments received. The publication of the FSEIS represents the completion of this part of the review process and will be used to support the review of the air permit application. For more information and to view the FSEIS documents, visit the SEIS tab below. Schedule information regarding the air permit review status and processes are not presently available.
On December 10, 2019 the Agency completed a review of the Puget Sound Energy Tacoma Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility Notice of Construction Application (NOC 11386) and the comments received on the proposed approval. The Agency has made a final determination that the proposal meets all the requirements of Agency Regulations I, II and III and should be approved through the issuance of Order of Approval No. 11386. The final order and permit review documents may be found below.
See also a statement from our Executive Director on this process.
In accordance with the Pollution Control Hearings Board’s (PCHB) decision in PCHB No. 19-087c, the Agency issued Notice of Construction Order of Approval 11386A for PSE LNG on September 14, 2022. This revised Order of Approval incorporates the continuous emissions monitoring systems for volatile organic compounds (VOC) and sulfur dioxide (SO2) that were required by the PCHB’s order.
Final Order of Approval No. 11386
Puget Sound Energy
1001 E Alexander Ave.
Tacoma WA 98421
Final Determination
The Agency has completed a review of PSE’s Tacoma LNG application No. 11386, as well as the comments received on the proposed order of approval, and has made a final determination that the proposal meets all the requirements of Agency Regulations I, II and III and should be approved. A review of the environmental impacts from this project was evaluated by the City of Tacoma, as documented in an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) published on November 9, 2015. The Puget Sound Clean Air Agency supplemented the Air and Cumulative Impact sections in the City of Tacoma’s FEIS, specifically related to the life-cycle emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs), with a published Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (FSEIS) on March 29, 2019. The Agency is relying on both documents to satisfy the SEPA requirements for this NOC application. More information on the FEIS and the FSEIS can be found on the SEIS tab on this page.
Permit Documents
- Final Order of Approval No. 11386 (PDF)
- Final Engineering Review Worksheet - NOC 11386 (PDF)
- Worksheet Appendices (Public Comment & Responses)
The proposed NOC review documents posted for the public comment period can be found here.
Appeal Information
Pursuant to Puget Sound Clean Air Agency's Regulation I, Section 3.17 and RCW 43.21B.310, this Order may be appealed to the Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB). To appeal to the PCHB, a written notice of appeal must be filed with the PCHB and a copy served upon Puget Sound Clean Air Agency within 30 days of the date the applicant receives this Order.
In addition, any appeal of the Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement shall be with the Agency’s Order on the NOC application and shall be commenced within the time frame required to appeal the Agency’s Order on the NOC application. See Agency Regulation I, Section 3.17.
Permit Process Flow Chart
SEPA Review
The City of Tacoma conducted the SEPA review for PSE LNG and issued an environmental impact statement on November 9, 2015.
View the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) - Tacoma LNG.
Supplemental EIS
The SEIS supplemented the Air and Cumulative Impacts sections of the City of Tacoma’s FEIS, specifically related to GHGs, to include quantitative analysis of the emissions throughout the full life cycle.
The SEIS was completed on March 29, 2019 and can be viewed on the SEIS tab of this web page.
Receive Permit Application
PSE submitted their initial Notice of Construction (NOC) application on May 22, 2017.
Review for Completeness
The application was reviewed for completeness within 30 days of receipt to ensure all necessary information was submitted. The original application was found to be incomplete, and a series of emails was sent back and forth between PSE and the Agency to gather all the required information the Agency needed to deem the application complete. See the Permit Application tab for more details.
The Agency deemed the PSE LNG application technically complete on October 3, 2017.
Public Information Meeting
Public information meetings enable the public to learn about the application and ask questions about the permit review process or the application. The Agency answers questions during a public information meeting. No decision to approve or deny an application is made at a public information meeting.
Public information meetings were held on November 27 and December 1, 2017.
Preliminary Determination to Issue or Deny
This part of the process includes a preliminary Best Available Control Technology (BACT) review, a toxic emission assessment, ensuring a SEPA review was conducted and all modeling required for toxic air contaminants. A preliminary determination to issue means the source will likely meet all regulatory requirements.
On July 22, 2019 the Agency completed a review of the Puget Sound Energy Tacoma Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility Notice of Construction Application (NOC 11386) and has made a preliminary determination that the proposal meets all the requirements of Agency Regulations I, II and III and should be approved.
Public Comment Period
The Agency posted a copy of the draft analysis and permit for public review. This is the public's opportunity to comment on the permit. The Agency will review and consider all comments after the end of the public comment period. The final analysis will include the Agency's responses to all comments and any changes to the permit. The Agency is unable to discuss the project or respond to comments during the public comment period.
The public comment was open from July 22, 2019 - September 9, 2019.
Public Hearing
During a public hearing the public is able to voice concerns or comments they feel the Agency should take into consideration before issuing or denying a permit.
A public hearing for an air permit is different than a public information meeting and different than a courtroom hearing. At the hearing, there will be no judge and no presentations given by the Agency. The purpose of a public hearing is solely to allow people to make comments for the Agency to consider before taking final action on the permit. All comments become part of the public record for the permit. Agency staff is not allowed to answer questions during a public hearing. If any questions are asked they will be taken as comments, but not addressed by the Agency during the hearing.
A public hearing was held on August 27, 2019.
Consider and Respond to Comments
The Agency reviewed and considered all comments received during the public comment period and at the public hearing. The final analysis, including the Agency's response to all comments, is available on the Permit Review tab of this page for anyone that signed in at the public hearing and to anyone that submitted written comments.
Issue or Deny Permit
After all steps are completed, the Agency will either issue or deny the permit.
The Agency completed the review of the permit application and supporting information and prepared a final permit decision and a response to comments. Order of Approval No. 11386 was issued on December 10, 2019.
Permit Documents
Date | Description | Documents |
|---|---|---|
| July 22, 2019 | The Agency completed a review and has made a preliminary determination that the proposal meets all the requirements of Agency Regulations I, II and III and should be approved. | |
| March 29, 2019 | Supplemental Information for NOC Application | |
| March 29, 2019 | The Agency completed the Final SEIS. | |
| October 8, 2018 | The Agency completed the Draft SEIS. | |
| January 24, 2018 | The Agency determined that a SEIS is required to identify and analyze greenhouse gas emissions and impacts for the project. | |
| November 6, 2017 | Updated flare inlet comparison for BACT determination. | |
| October 3, 2017 | The Agency deemed the PSE LNG application technically complete. | |
| September 27, 2017 | Hexavalent chromium and a flare response summary. | |
| September 15, 2017 | Emission calculations and modeling results. | |
| September 8, 2017 | Results of air quality modeling. | |
| August 11, 2017 | PSE responded further to the Agency's June 21st letter requesting more information. | |
| June 30, 2017 | PSE responded to the Agency's letter requesting additional information. | |
| June 22, 2017 | Results of modeling of air pollutants from the proposed facility. | |
| June 21, 2017 | The Agency did a preliminary review of the application submitted by PSE and requested additional information from them. The letter describes in detail the information needed. | |
| May 22, 2017 | PSE submitted the NOC application. |
Notice Of Availability
Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement
Puget Sound Clean Air Agency is releasing a Final Supplemental Impact Statement (FSEIS) on March 29, 2019, for the Puget Sound Energy Tacoma Liquefied Natural Gas Project.
Puget Sound Energy has submitted a Notice of Construction (NOC) application to the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency (Agency) for the Tacoma Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) facility (“project”). On November 9, 2015, the City of Tacoma issued the “Puget Sound Energy proposed Tacoma Liquefied Natural Gas Project Final Environmental Impact Statement” (FEIS). On January 24, 2018, the Agency announced its determination a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) was required to identify and analyze greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and impacts for the project.
The Final SEIS is supplementing the Air and Cumulative Impact sections related to GHGs in the City of Tacoma’s FEIS. The FEIS’ GHG analysis included a quantitative analysis of GHGs on the project site and some qualitative analysis on the use of LNG produced. It stated that there was a reduction in GHG emissions associated with the project, yet did not show a complete quantitative analysis of GHG emissions upstream and downstream of the LNG facility operations. The FSEIS includes a complete quantitative analysis of the GHG emissions throughout the fuel life cycle (a life cycle analysis). This analysis was completed for the proposed facility operations (both current proposed facility and the maximum capacity facility identified in the FEIS) and compared to the no-build or no-action alternative. The FSEIS discusses the source of the natural gas that would supply the proposed facility operations as an important factor for this analysis. The information in the Final SEIS indicates that a GHG emission reduction from the proposed project (on a life cycle basis) can be predicted in comparison to the no-build option, providing the source of the natural gas is consistent with that identified by the proponent.
Project Name: Tacoma Liquefied Natural Gas Project (including TOTE Marine Vessel LNG Fueling System)
Project Proponent: Puget Sound Energy
Location of Project: E 11th Street, Tacoma, WA
Document Location: The Final SEIS (and Appendices) can be accessed below. Hard copies of the FSEIS can be reviewed at the Agency office (office hours are 8am-4:30pm, Monday-Friday). Hard copies of the FSEIS can also be reviewed at all open branches of the Tacoma Public Library and at The Center at Norpoint (4818 Nassau Ave N.E.) in Tacoma. In addition, a limited number of complementary hardcopies or flash drives of the FSEIS will be made available from the Agency (while the supply lasts). Due to the size of the FSEIS, some appendices are only available electronically and can be downloaded at the link below. A limited number of flash drives containing the full document and appendices will be available by request at the Agency office.
- Cover Letter and Notice of Availability of FSEIS
- Final SEIS Tacoma LNG
- FSEIS Appendix C4 Part 1
- FSEIS Appendix C4 Part 2
- LCA Calculations
Next Steps and Appeal Information: As a reminder, the SEIS process is not a permit decision on the NOC application. After the Final SEIS is published, the Agency will recommence processing the NOC. There will be opportunities for public comment (including a hearing) on any proposed NOC approval, when the Agency reaches that stage in the process. In addition, any appeal of the SEIS shall be with the Agency’s Order on the NOC application and shall be commenced within the time frame required to appeal the Agency’s Order on the NOC application. See Agency Regulation I, Section 3.17.
The Draft SEIS and supporting documentation can be found here.