Gov. Inslee visits, talks Pullman biodiesel possibility

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee said he is impressed with the proposed biodiesel plant that a company wants to locate in Pullman.

The governor visited Whitman County on a trip that included a meeting with the Port of Whitman commissioners. The commission has received a $5 million loan from the Washington Community Economic Revitalization Board to acquire property for a Agriculture Advancement Center, where the biodiesel plant would be the anchor tenant. AgTech OS is the company behind the plant, which would manufacture biodiesel from canola seeds.

Inslee also spoke to Washington State University students at The Foley Institute on campus and talked about the proposed plant.

“I was so impressed that every single thing in that system is now a circular system with almost zero waste,” he said.

Two WSU employees are part of AgTech OS. Brian Kraft, assistant vice president of innovation and research engagement at WSU, is the chief technology officer of AgTech OS. Tiff Reiss, interim director of the Harold Frank Scholars program within the WSU Voiland College of Engineering and Architecture, is the company’s executive director of education and training.

Inslee said he recently attended the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Egypt and “circular” was one of the most popular buzzwords he heard there.

“Cougars are ahead of the world,” Inslee said.

The biodiesel plant, which has raised concerns among local residents for issues like noise and water use, is expected to create 44 jobs in Pullman.

Inslee spoke of other examples of green industries creating jobs for Washington residents. He mentioned a carbon fiber manufacturer in Moses Lake, a fuel cell manufacturer in Seattle and a solar farm in Lind, Wash.

On Friday, Inslee also visited WSU’s Center for Cannabis Policy, Research, and Outreach, where he spoke to researchers about making hemp floorboards for electric vehicles and using hemp to make building materials.

Inslee said these examples contradict the notion that the shift to green industries is bad for the working class.

“There has been a profound change in the politics of this because we’re actually seeing these jobs come to roost and these are good paying jobs with a bright future,” he said.

In addition to environmental issues, Inslee also spoke about the housing shortage in Washington. He said there are simply not enough homes being manufactured for Washington residents.

“We’ve had about a million people move into the state since I’ve been governor, but we’ve only built about 350,000 housing units,” Inslee said.

That leads to more homeless people as well as college graduates having to live with their parents because they cannot afford rent or buy a house, he said.

Inslee said he has proposed a $4 billion investment in low-income housing to address this shortage. He said there is also a proposed bill in the Legislature to ease zoning laws to open up more land for housing.

When it comes to reducing homelessness, Inslee said housing is also key to addressing substance abuse and mental health issues among those living on the streets. It is easier for people to break their addiction when they have a roof over their head, he said.

“It’s really hard to break this under a tarp,” he said. “It’s really hard for people to get mental health treatment living under a tarp.”

Kuipers can be reached at akuipers@dnews.com.