A proposal to build a giant manure digester in a small community in Washington state has caused an uproar among residents who say the project, which would convert waste from dairy cows into fuel, would add to the region’s already significant pollution problems.
At issue is a proposed fertilizer digester project called Sunnyside RNG, LLC, which would be the largest in the United States.
The company behind the project, Oregon-based crop residue harvesting and supply company Pacific Ag, says the project will help reduce pollution generated by concentrated community animal feeding operations (CAFOs) and increase local jobs and energy production.
But critics say Pacific’s proposal is misleading and worry the facility will do more harm than good to the region.
“This will force farms to increase their cattle numbers, and we strongly believe that the cattle concentrations in the lower Yakima Valley are already too high,” said Gene Mendoza, executive director of Friends of Toppenish Creek, a Washington state nonprofit focused on water conservation and strict monitoring of agriculture. “The people who live there are very unhappy with the idea of building something like a natural gas processing plant in the middle of the city.”
This project is emblematic of a broader national struggle. Such digesters are becoming increasingly common in the United States to handle the large amounts of waste produced by large livestock and dairy farms. There is Estimation There are currently 394 fertilizer-based digesters in operation in the United States, with more than 70 under construction, representing a 55% increase over the past 10 years. 
The selling point of such projects is that they can reduce water pollution and climate-warming emissions associated with animal waste, especially methane. According to , manure digesters reduced greenhouse gases by more than 13 million tons in 2023. Latest data available from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)).
“By safely consolidating and effectively reusing regional fertilizers, this new facility will help address the overall challenges of emissions, odor and pollution resulting from regional fertilizer management challenges,” said Harrison Pettit, Pacific’s chief development officer.
But critics argue that the facilities themselves emit air pollution and fuel CAFO growth by monetizing already full and polluting fertilizer. and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Closed this week All government loan guarantees for such projects will be lifted until the end of the year while the ministry investigates loan arrears, poor performance and other issues with the digestion facilities.
Pacific is currently awaiting final air permit approval from the Yakima Regional Clean Air Authority, which covers the lower Yakima Valley area where Sunnyside is located. This region is a hotbed of dairy CAFOs; more than one-third Of all the dairy cows in Washington.
Emissions to the atmosphere
The facility, located on 50 acres just south of Sunnyside, Washington, will produce approximately 650,000 British Thermal Units (MMBtu) of renewable natural gas (RNG) annually from approximately 900,000 tons of manure from more than 43,000 local dairy cows, Pettit said.
Although RNG requires some purification after the digester, it is used in some vehicles and as a replacement for natural gas. Sunnyside’s estimated annual RNG production will be more than three times the annual RNG production of the less than 600,000 MMBtu of BC Organics in Wisconsin, currently the largest fertilizer digestion facility. Website. Pettit said Sunnyside RNG will bring as many as 30 full-time jobs to the area.
“This process captures 95% of the methane that would otherwise be emitted from the fertilizer lagoon, which corresponds to about 30% of the downstream fertilizer,” he said. “This equates to the removal of approximately 70,000 vehicles per year.”
“This process captures 95% of the methane that would otherwise be emitted from the fertilizer lagoon, which equates to about 30% of the fertilizer in the lower valley.” – Harrison Pettit, Pacific
Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency provisional approval For February’s project. The agency acknowledged that the facility emits greenhouse gases and some toxic air pollutants, but its levels are considered a “minor” source of air emissions, meaning it is subject to less stringent regulations than major air pollutant emitters. It was also determined that an environmental impact assessment was not necessary.
“This facility is considered a local source (minor source) based on potential emissions of hazardous air pollutants below standard air pollutant and major source thresholds,” the aviation agency wrote.
But Kingsley McConnell, a staff attorney at the Center for Food Safety and a Yakima-area resident, said Pacific “significantly underestimated the digester emissions and cumulative impacts, and the permit relies on inaccurate or outdated data.”
As part of the application, the company must demonstrate how the facility increases this background pollution and the Yakima Regional Clean Air Authority. used data We estimated current levels of particulate matter pollution (PM2.5) and ozone in the region from 2014 to 2017.
“This does not accurately reflect the increase in emissions from various sources over the past decade,” Mendoza said, adding: more recent data indicates much higher levels of particulate matter than those cited in the application. Last year, the American Lung Association 8th most polluted In Japan, short-term particulate matter pollution is a concern.
Source: Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency
Additionally, Pacific’s annual air emissions estimates for several toxic pollutants, including PM2.5, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide, are just below federal Clean Air Act standards, potentially triggering additional regulations.
“What we’re talking about is a very thin margin,” McConnell said, noting that the application doesn’t take leakage into account.
Scientific studies show that digesters can leak up to 14% We aim to recover methane. For example, BC Organics, currently the country’s largest fertilizer digestion facility, emitted 4,921 tons of methane. in 2024at least in part due to leaks at the facility.
“Permits rely on inaccurate or outdated data.” – Kingsly McConnell, Center for Food Safety
Mark Thornsbury, executive director of the Yakima Regional Clean Air Agency, said data from 2014 to 2017 was used because Sunnyside’s air monitoring equipment will be upgraded to federal standards in 2023 and “the amount of acceptable data collected is not yet sufficient to establish background estimates specific to the lower Yakima Valley region.”
“It is worth noting that more recent data do not guarantee the best information available, as they may be incomplete, of insufficient quantity, or may not meet validation requirements for use in developing background concentrations,” he added.
Pettit said the company complies with all local, state and federal requirements, adding that air emissions estimates do not include leaks because they are not required by permits.
“While there may be some leakage, it is in our economic interest to capture and use as much as possible. This is an input into the products we sell,” he said.
Thornsbury said there is no timeline for when a final permitting decision will be made, but that the agency will “thoroughly consider the comments provided before reaching a final decision.”
call your name
A late March public hearing over Sunnyside RNG only added to the controversy. Pacific Ag representative Kipp Curtis was texting during the meeting, and attendees were taking photos of the text exchange.
“I have never seen so many uneducated people throwing out ‘facts’ and I have never seen men with so many wallets,” Curtis wrote.
It’s unclear who Curtis was texting with, but the other person wrote, “This bitch pisses me off,” before Curtis texted about Community.
Sunnyside Mayor Vicki Frausto posted a photo of the text exchange at: facebook.
“We cannot afford to come to our city and make a mockery of people who promote a project of this scale, fail to inform residents, and expect them to live with the consequences,” she said in a statement. “You owe this community an apology, and we will not back down.”
Sunnyside is 83% Hispanic and more than 18% of residents live in poverty, which is 75% higher than the national average. “For decades, decisions have been made without us at the table,” Frausto wrote. “When we demand accountability, we get labeled as the problem.”
Pettit did not respond to questions about the text messages. in Previous press releaseCurtis said the company will “build and operate a factory that will bring pride to the Sunnyside community.”
Digester Federal Loan Suspension
The Battle of Sunnyside RNG will take place this week sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Extended suspension period Loans for anaerobic digesters, many of which are issued to large farms that convert animal waste into gas, will be financed until the end of 2026 due to “persistent and growing concerns”.
This week’s order extended a moratorium announced in January that ended federal loan guarantees for new anaerobic digester projects, citing large loan delinquencies and project failures.
In its original directive, USDA cited $102.6 million in delinquent loans for anaerobic digesters, but did not name the delinquent companies.
USDA Analysis by The New Lede renderlens portal The investigation revealed four anaerobic digester loans totaling $102.6 million in delinquency. $100 million of that belongs to BC Organic, whose loans, which originally totaled more than $104 million, are 181 to 360 days in arrears.
Featured Image: USDA
-
Brian Bienkowski is the editor-in-chief of The New Lede. He is a veteran journalist with over 15 years of experience covering the environment and human health. Prior to joining TNL, he served as senior editor at Environmental Health News for nearly a decade, overseeing the newsroom and two local bureaus. He was also the founder, producer, and host of the EJ podcast Agents of Change from 2020 to 2024.
Bienkowski has received multiple awards for her editing and reporting, including honors from the Healthcare Journalists Association, Columbia School of Journalism, Hunter College, and the Environmental Journalists Association. He has a master’s degree in environmental journalism from Michigan State University and lives in northern Michigan.
