On Tuesday, May 13, the Clark County Council voted unanimously to repeal a controversial mining overlay on four parcels in Chelatchie, officially ending a three-year legal dispute and bringing the county back into compliance with state law.
The overlay, approved in 2022, had allowed Granite Construction to pursue aggregate mining on 330 acres despite lacking an environmental impact statement (EIS) required under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). That led to a successful legal challenge by Friends of Clark County, which resulted in the Growth Management Hearings Board (GMHB) declaring the ordinance invalid. The Washington State Court of Appeals upheld the board's decision in March.
Last year, county staff warned that noncompliance could put up to $6.4 million in clean water grants and low-interest loans at risk, though that estimate was later revised to $2.9 million. During council discussions, some councilors expressed confusion about the true financial impact, as staff explained the county had stopped applying for certain grants and loans it was no longer eligible for, making the exact amount of lost funding difficult to determine.
Residents and environmental advocates addressed the council last week, urging them to act.
John Nanney, president of the Chelatchie Prairie Coalition, said he was encouraged to see the council take action to repeal the mining overlay after the failed court appeal. Nanney said the previous overlay required an adequate environmental review to determine the impacts of surface mining.
"My advice is stay out of bed with big corporations and follow not only the letter but the intent of the law," Nanney added.
Loo-Wit Sierra Club Conservation Chair Wendy Cleveland, who has spoken against the overlay in prior meetings, said the public had provided extensive warnings years ago that went unheeded.
"When this started, I and many others, even smarter than me, spoke to the council countless times," Cleveland said. "We were disregarded when the new council took their seats."
"This seems to have been done to satisfy a group of favored stakeholders. The rest of the taxpayers be damned," she added "You know what the right thing to do here is, so do it. Fix this."
Granite Construction, the leaseholder of the mineral rights on the parcels, had previously urged the council to wait until the appeals process concluded before taking any action. Oral arguments in the case were held in January. Following the unanimous appellate ruling in March, county staff advised that further delay could put the county's eligibility for state funding at risk.
Councilors Glen Yung, Michelle Belkot, Wil Fuentes, Matt Little and Sue Marshall all voted in favor of the repeal, which will go into effect on May 30.
The council's vote to repeal the mining overlay resolves one compliance issue, but another risk may already be on the horizon. In April, the council voted 3-2 to reinstate a study to determine whether to remove protections from agricultural lands, which could pave the way for urban expansion. Opponents, including Council Chair Sue Marshall, warned that pushing forward with the study under a tight timeline could jeopardize the county's compliance with the Growth Management Act once again. Clark County could face renewed ineligibility for state grants and loans if the comprehensive plan update falls behind the state's 2025 deadline.
