The Federal Way City Council unanimously passed a resolution opposing a proposed methanol plant in Tacoma on Thursday night.

Federal Way Mayor Jim Ferrell called an emergency council meeting to hear from citizens, many of whom are against Northwest Innovation Works’ methanol plant. About 180 attended the council meeting.

“The potential environmental health impacts this may have on our community could be severe,” Ferrell told the crowd. “While from a technical standpoint it is early in the process, we believe it is important for you to know that we are listening to your viewpoints… We share your anxieties and fears on the yet-to-be determined impact on this proposed plan.”

Each member of the City Council expressed concerns related to the project. Earlier in the week, Councilwomen Susan Honda and Kelly Maloney testified at a public meeting in Tacoma on the methanol plant.

Northwest Innovation Works has proposed to develop and operate the natural gas-to-methanol production plant on 125 acres leased from the Port of Tacoma. The project is still in its feasibility study phase.

But numerous citizens, both in Tacoma and in Federal Way, worry about the plant’s potential environmental impact and claim the transparency from the city of Tacoma and the developer has been lacking.

“[The] reckless decision by our port commissioners have compromised our human, our economic and our environmental securities for Tacoma, for our sister cities, Federal Way, Fife and Puyallup,” said Donna Waterss, who gave public testimony at the meeting. “We are at a crossroads in time where protecting our resources should be first and foremost with city politicians.”

A self-described “recovering lawyer,” Janna Stewart has lived in Federal Way for four months and worries about the property values of homes near the plant. More important to her, however, has been the public process.

“The company and city of Tacoma have attempted to do… a ‘divide and conquer’ kind of an approach, which is to limit these EIS (environmental impact statement) projects individually rather than looking at them holistically,” Stewart said, adding that she has professional experience handling environmental issues.

Federal Way’s Community Development Director Michael Morales agreed that the city of Tacoma has left many Federal Way officials and local residents questioning key elements of the project.

“We want to see a comprehensive and holistic view of the project and its environmental impact, and we want to make sure that the review and the analysis does not just follow arbitrary lines for notice and public participation and comment,” Morales said. “Environmental plumes do not recognize city limits, and so we want to be sure that we continue to be involved in that process and that our residents have every opportunity…”

Pipeline safety, air quality, best practices during emergencies, traffic and cost-benefit analysis were just a few issues Morales listed as areas of concern.

While the project would provide 200 jobs, Morales pointed out that that’s still fewer jobs than Kaiser Aluminum, the business that formerly occupied the proposed plant site, filled when it was in operation.

However, Morales stressed that his biggest objection to the project is the “severely inadequate” initial scoping of discussion and analysis of the “environmental justice issue.

Morales said the project would affect vulnerable populations in Tacoma and parts of Federal Way, especially those who live in poverty and don’t speak English.

If this project is approved, Morales said those populations will be subjected to disruptive environmental impacts, which will “continue to keep down property values, continue to keep down the viability for free investment in many neighborhoods and communities and particularly in Federal Way.

“I know we can say we know we’re one of the most diverse communities in the state. We have the most diverse school districts in the state with the most different languages spoken in the state. And so I’m not seeing in this environmental impact scoping how the Port of Tacoma and the city of Tacoma and [Northwest Innovation Works] plan to reach out to underrepresented communities to cross linguistic and cultural barriers to ensure not only [that] the people participate in the process but will be able to understand and have a clear understanding of what their role is and their response should be in terms of an environmental disaster.”

While it seemed that nearly everyone at the council meeting agreed with the concerns presented, there were a few in favor of the project who spoke up.

Lou Paulsen, a resident of Federal Way for 25 years, is the director of strategic operations at the Port of Tacoma. He negotiated the lease with Northwest Innovation Works on the condition that a feasibility study take place, and that study is on “month 20,” he said.

Paulsen said he believes the methanol plant will provide a number of environmental advantages that will be revealed. He encouraged the city to speak with him or with the president of Northwest Innovation Works.

Mark Spaur, also a Federal Way resident of 25 years, said the rigorous public process “hasn’t been hidden.”

“It’s been available, it’s been published in the papers, so the resolution saying this has been done in an underhanded way, I just don’t agree with,” Spaur said. “I think it’s been very transparent. This project is already creating jobs in Federal Way.”

Spaur also said he believed this project was a “green” project.

“It will use the heat of the reaction to generate the methanol,” he said, adding that he is a chemical engineer who has reviewed the process flow sheet and is “convinced” it can be done safely.

Longtime Federal Way resident Jim Stiles encouraged the community to look at the facts and not be swayed by emotion, and he highlighted the potential positive environmental effects of the plant.

“I remember the aroma of Tacoma, I remember the rendering plant, I remember the paper mill, the ASARCO plant, the ASARCO smelter. I remember the joy in my heart the day that tower came down,” Stiles said. “And what a horrible thing that was. But remember this is not a smelting plant, this is not a rendering plant that we’re talking about; this is not a paper mill. This is something that, what they’re trying to, whether you agree with it or not, they’re trying to substitute in China the production of this material from methane from natural gas from coal.”