Drax in Longview

Protest poster: Don't let our forests go up in smoke. Keep Drax out of Longview.

The U.K. company Drax wants to build an export-oriented wood pellet plant next to the Port of Longview. Drax has a bad record of violating air pollution standards, and misleading the public about where they get their wood.

Conveyor gantry at a waterfront loading facility, with a barge of wood chips beyond

The plant, if built, would export roughly 450,000 tons of wood pellets to Asian markets annually. Drax got the site when it purchased Pinnacle Renewable Energy, a pellet producer that also had significant holdings in British Columbia. The Longview project would ‘do business as’ Pinnacle Renewable Holdings. But it’s Drax.

Map of Cowlitz County shaded to show that Drax's proposed Longview plant would require 53.2% of the county's available timber resources: 40.2% for wood pellets and 13% for hog fuel

Our group estimates that Drax’ plant, if built, would require more than half of the total land area of Cowlitz County per year to feed that demand.

Bar chart: all current timber sales and thinning projects in the Cowlitz Ranger District would only cover about a tenth of Drax's projected annual wood demand

Timber sales in Cowlitz County’s public lands would have to increase ten times to satisfy Drax’s demand.

Wood pellet plants pollute release harmful air pollutants during the production process. For example, the chipping and drying of the wood to create the pellets produces carbon dioxide and other dangerous pollutants like VOCs, PM, NOx, and carbon monoxide. These can harm human health. Exposure to PM can cause breathing problems, asthma attacks, and even early death in people with heart or lung issues.

Drax is a company from the U.K. with a history of repeated air emissions violations. The company has paid millions in fines for violating air pollution requirements in Mississippi and Louisiana. In Longview, Drax has already been fined for building without the required air quality permits.

Large dome structure under construction on the Drax property in Longview, March 2024 — Drax erected this structure on its Longview property in March 2024, before any construction permits had been issued. SWCAA fined Drax for illegal construction, and the dome was removed shortly afterward. Photo courtesy of Diane Dick, all rights reserved.

Drax’ original permit request in Longview suggested the company would only use sawdust and mill waste. Drax later changed its story and acknowledged that it would be using whole trees. Although Drax emphasizes the use of 'residuals' (leftover wood) to make pellets, the company was also caught cutting down old-growth trees in Canada to meet its production needs.

Drax/Pinnacle may re-file its air discharge permit application. Many aspects of the project have changed since the initial filing. Drax’s history of wood pellet plant operations that violate air quality standards and impact public health is a serious problem. Cowlitz County and the City of Longview should review the SEPA determination in light of this new information. (See Hit The Road Drax.)

Take Action