LRAPA to host community meeting on Seneca Sustainable Energy, LLC on September 8, 2021.
LANE COUNTY — The Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA) plans to host a community meeting on Seneca Sustainable Energy, LLC (SSE) wood-fired electrical cogeneration powerplant (cogen plant) in northwest Eugene from 6:00pm to 8:00pm on September 8, 2021, at the Eugene Public Library in the Bascom-Tykeson room.
SSE has completed a preliminary risk assessment of the plant’s air emissions, as required by the Cleaner Air Oregon (CAO) program. This process inventoried which of 600 pollutants regulated by CAO are emitted from SSE, modeled how these pollutants move across the region, determined who is exposed to them, and assessed the potential health risk of that exposure.
“LRAPA anticipated a very low potential health risk from the cogen plant, and the preliminary risk assessment indicates that’s the case. In fact, it’s so low that community engagement isn’t required by Cleaner Air Oregon rules,” said LRAPA spokesperson Travis Knudsen. “However, we know the community has a high interest in the plant so we’re pausing the process to allow time for a public meeting where air concerns can be raised, and questions can be answered.”
The meeting will share information gathered on SSE through the CAO process as well as solicit feedback and input from those who live near the community.
“An important step when determining health risk from air emissions is to have accurate answers to the questions of: Who lives near the facility? Who works nearby? Where are the schools and daycares? Are there any places people recreate at close to the facility?” said Knudsen. “We want the community to review the answers to these questions on Seneca Sustainable Energy, so any corrections can be implemented into the risk assessment.”
The meeting can be attended both in-person at the Eugene Public Library, and online via Zoom webinar. Masks are required for all in-person participants regardless of vaccination status. LRAPA will follow guidance from Governor Brown’s office, the Oregon Health Authority, and Lane County Public Health on public gatherings. If needed, LRAPA will shift this public meeting to exclusively virtual.
No registration is required for in-person participation. To participate online, register on LRAPA’s CAO Community Engagement webpage: https://www.lrapa.org/338/Community-Engagement
