LONGVIEW — Millennium Bulk Terminals Friday failed in its attempt to move its appeal of a permit denial into Cowlitz County Superior Court.
Instead, the case will be heard in Thurston County by the state Pollution Control Hearings Board.
The state Department of Ecology last fall denied Millennium’s application for a water quality permit for its $680 million coal export terminal west of Longview. Millennium appealed Ecology’s ruling in two venues: In Cowlitz County Superior Court and with the pollution hearings board.
On Friday, Cowlitz County Superior Court Judge Stephen Warning ruled that the courts here do not have jurisdiction to consider the appeal. Millennium’s lawyers said it will appeal Warning’s ruling to state appeals court.
Meanwhile, the company will continue to pursue its appeal with PCHB, which has scheduled a two-week hearing on the matter in September. In part, Millennium wanted the case heard in Cowlitz County in hopes of accelerating the action. It has been trying to get its project permitted for seven years.
Under the Clean Water Act, Millennium must have the state water quality certification before it can dredge the Columbia’s riverbed and fill wetlands. This is one of 23 permits the company needs.
In his ruling Friday, Judge Warning sided with a coalition of environmental groups intervening in the case who argued that the PCHB is the proper venue for permit appeals.
“Millennium’s attempt to skip over the standard legal process was denied,” said Jasmine Zimmer-Stucky, a senior organizer with Columbia Riverkeeper, in a statement to The Daily News. “The legal battle to defend Washington’s right to protect water quality will continue in the proper forum.”
Millennium, which is currently fighting five different legal challenges, appeared to take Warning’s ruling in stride.
“We respect the court’s decision and look forward to presenting our case before the Pollution Control Hearings Board,” Wendy Hutchinson, Millennium’s vice president of government and public affairs, said in a prepared statement.
In its denial, Ecology found that the project would worsen air quality, vehicle traffic, vessel traffic, rail capacity, rail safety, noise pollution, social and community resources, cultural resources and tribal resources.
Millennium maintains that the project’s environmental impact statement concluded it would have no significant impact on water quality, and Ecology’s permitting decision was based on a bias against coal.
