SNOHOMISH — Snohomish County on Tuesday rolled out its first $12 million center to dry and store canola seed, steps needed before turning them into biodiesel.
The project is expected to increase local production of the renewable fuel as well as benefit farmers who grow rapeseed, commonly known as canola.
“This project is good for farmers, good for the county, good for reducing the dependence on foreign oil and good for our energy independence,” County Councilman Dave Somers said.
This year, local farmers are harvesting about 400 acres of canola; the crop will be sent to the new facility, south of Snohomish.
The county expects to build a crusher in a few months in Monroe or Stanwood, said Deanna Carveth, a project specialist for the county’s public works department. The crusher would be used to make biodiesel from the canola seeds stored at the $12 million center in Cathcart.
The resulting fuel would be used to operate the county’s trucks.
Biodiesel is an alternative fuel that can be made from a variety of vegetable oils including canola and corn. It’s a cleaner burning renewable version of petroleum-based diesel.
The goal is to increase a “locally grown, locally processed, locally used fuel source,” said Ryan Hembree, the county’s agricultural coordinator.
The new processing center is adjacent to the county’s Cathcart landfill. Solid waste rotting in the 40-acre landfill generates methane gas, which is being used to operate the facility, said Steve Thomsen, the county’s public works director.
In 2005, local farmers started raising canola as an experiment, Hembree said. The county backed up their effort as a way to revitalize local agriculture. Three years later, officials said they are convinced that the crop will be successful in the county.
“We realize we have some of the best soils in the country,” County Executive Aaron Reardon said.
State and federal officials have taken interest in the county’s project. The processing center received $344,400 from the federal government and a $500,000 grant from the state’s energy freedom fund, Carveth said.
County officials expect local canola production to increase over the next few years.
About 1,000 acres of canola will help power the county’s fleet of several hundred trucks, which consume about 600,000 gallons of diesel per year.
Having the means to process canola locally should help farmers, said Don Bailey, a Snohomish farmer. Local farmers struggled to make ends meet as traditional food processors moved out of the area.
“It will give us a way to grow and harvest (canola) as a cash crop,” Bailey said.
Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.
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