TagSEPA(232)

The Des Moines, WA City Council is reviewing a 2026 workplan for its Airport Advisory Committee, an advisory body created in June 2025 to address issues related to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The workplan focuses primarily on the airport's Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP) and its environmental review process, with the committee advocating for expanded air quality monitoring, a more comprehensive traffic impact analysis, and stronger noise mitigation measures for affected residents. The committee also plans to conduct a community survey in mid-2026 to gauge public awareness of the airport's projected operational growth and its impacts on the Des Moines community.

The cities of Burien, Des Moines, Normandy Park, and SeaTac have entered into a formal interlocal agreement to coordinate their review of, and potential legal challenges to, the Port of Seattle's Sustainable Airport Master Plan, which could bring significant growth and environmental impacts to their communities over the next 20 years. Under the agreement, the four cities will jointly hire environmental consultants and legal counsel, share costs proportionally based on population, and issue unified comment letters during the NEPA and SEPA review processes. The City of SeaTac is designated as the lead administrator for contracts and finances, while all four cities must unanimously agree before filing any joint legal appeal.

Airport Advisory Committee meeting agenda for December 8, 2025, including items on SAMP updates, StART meeting updates, complaints/communications, and committee work plan. Responses on noise complaint from Laurel Hughes. Also includes minutes from the November 10, 2025 meeting with discussion of Q&A with Steve Edmiston and various airport-related updates.

This document outlines the federal (NEPA) and state (SEPA) environmental review processes related to Sea-Tac Airport, tracing key milestones from initial scoping in 2018 through the issuance of a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) in September 2025 and a subsequent court appeal filed in November 2025. The NEPA process involved public comment periods, city council presentations, and a 4-city interlocal agreement, while the SEPA process determined the project required a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), with a Draft EIS expected in Q1 2026. Together, these timelines reflect years of coordinated efforts by multiple cities to formally challenge and scrutinize the environmental impacts of airport operations and expansion.

The City of SeaTac responded to a public records request (PRR25-568) from Paula Rodriguez seeking all communications, proposals, and scoring related to the selection of legal services for the Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP), covering both NEPA and SEPA processes from January 2024 through October 2025. The city provided 34 pages of responsive records, available on the city's website, and closed the request on December 3, 2025. Under RCW 42.56.550(6), the requester has one year from that date to seek judicial review.

The City of SeaTac acknowledged a public records request (PRR25-568) from Paula Rodriguez seeking all communications, proposals, and scoring related to the selection of legal services for the Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP), covering both NEPA and SEPA processes from January 1, 2024 to October 31, 2025. The request was received on November 30, 2025, and assigned a tracking number for processing by the relevant city departments. The City anticipated fulfilling the request by December 19, 2025.

In November 2025, the law firm Ogden Murphy Wallace (OMW) agreed to jointly represent the cities of Burien, Des Moines, and SeaTac as special environmental counsel in matters related to the Port of Seattle's Sustainable Airport Master Plan. The firm's scope of work covers environmental review processes under federal (NEPA) and state (SEPA) law, as well as any potential litigation against the Port of Seattle or the Federal Aviation Administration. Attorneys are billed at hourly rates ranging from $300 to $535 depending on role and experience, with no advance fee deposit required.

Jennifer Sanscrainte is an environmental and tribal law attorney at Ogden Murphy Wallace in Seattle, representing public and private clients on matters involving federal and state environmental laws such as CERCLA, the Clean Water Act, and the Clean Air Act. She specializes in site remediation, cleanup cost recovery, and permitting, and also works with Native American tribes on environmental program development. This document is a professional biography and does not contain information related to Sea-Tac Airport noise policy.