OPALCO receives conditional use permit for Decatur Island solar expansion project

||| FROM KRISTA BOUCHEY for OPALCO |||

On Tuesday, May 12, OPALCO was notified that they were granted the Conditional Use Permit for the Decatur Island Solar Expansion Project. The Decatur Island Solar Expansion project is a proposed ~1.6 MW AC Community Solar project. It’s adjacent to OPALCO’s substation and the current Community Solar project that was installed in 2017.

In March 2025, OPALCO acquired property on Decatur Island to expand utility-scale community solar. Since then, OPALCO has undergone extensive environmental review and project planning to include a site plan, critical area and wetland delineation, National Environmental Policy Act, State Environmental Policy Act, a stormwater plan, Cultural Resources Assessment, clearing and grading checklist, land use checklist, and a native landscaping plan. In February 2026, OPALCO presented the prepared material to the San Juan County Hearing Examiner in order to proceed with the permitting requirements and conditions.

There were two appeals to the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) determination of non-significance (DNS). OPALCO prepared a detailed and prescribed SEPA checklist and San Juan County staff gave the checklist a DNS, which means there is nominal environmental impact. Both appeals to the DNS ruling were denied by the Hearing Examiner.

Decatur residents have brought forward concerns about this project during various community engagement meetings. OPALCO has made efforts to meet community requests when possible. There are no legal reasons the project cannot move forward as all requirements were found to be met by the Hearing Examiner. OPALCO hopes to continue to work with the community as the project proceeds.

OPALCO has been working to incorporate local, renewable energy generation into our energy portfolio. The energy world is struggling to meet increasing demand throughout the region. Having some clean energy produced locally will be a real benefit to the islands.

“This is an important milestone for local renewable energy generation and long-term energy resilience in San Juan County,” said OPALCO General Manager, Foster Hildreth. “The Hearing Examiner’s decision reflects the extensive environmental review, technical analysis, and public process that has gone into this project over the past year.”

OPALCO will not seek modification of the existing Native Growth Area Covenant associated with the property.

OPALCO will submit to revise the Open Space restrictions set in the 2012 Simple Land Division while maintaining the 30% open space requirement.

With the Conditional Use Permit approved, OPALCO will now move forward with satisfying all remaining conditions of approval, including updated site design, stormwater permitting, fire safety measures, and submission of the project building permit application.

“We appreciate the thoughtful public engagement throughout this process,” said Hildreth. “OPALCO remains committed to balancing environmental stewardship, wildfire safety, and the growing need for reliable local energy generation for our island communities.” OPALCO will be continuing public engagement on future renewable energy projects. The OPALCO Board is looking to engage with San Juan County on siting for utility scale renewable projects.

This project is an expansion of the first Community Solar project, which began harvesting energy in July of 2018. It produces around 570,000 kWh annually! Approximately 270 OPALCO members own shares in this project. Members who bought shares in this project have received their full return on investment. The project was able to leverage grants and incentives to reduce the amount of time it took to get that return.

Interested members can stay tuned for upcoming information on when the next Community Solar shares will open up by emailing solar@opalco.com.

To read the full Conditional Permit decision or read any of the other permitting documents visit www.opalco.com/decatur.

Orcas Power & Light Cooperative (OPALCO) is our member-owned cooperative electric utility, serving more than
11,400 members on 20 islands in San Juan County. OPALCO provides electricity that is 97% greenhouse-gas free
and is generated predominantly by hydroelectric plants. OPALCO was founded in 1937.