The Olympic Region Clean Air Agency achieved some big milestones in 2025, and the local air quality in our region has some wonderful wins. We’ve compiled some of the biggest stories of 2025 below. We look forward to sharing more great news in 2026.
Moved Cheeka Peak Observatory to Bahokas Peak
ORCAA took over management of the national core (NCore) air quality monitoring components of Cheeka Peak Observatory (CPO) in Clallam County in 2010. The CPO site also hosted other monitoring equipment including an IMPROVE (Interagency Monitoring for Protected Visual Environments) station. Unfortunately, in early 2025, the power lines feeding the CPO site failed and couldn’t be reasonably repaired or replaced.
ORCAA worked with the Makah Tribe, the U.S. EPA, and other partners to find a suitable replacement for the nationally-important monitoring station near Neah Bay. A site was identified just 5 kilometers north on Bahokas Peak (see images above). This site, on the Makah Reservation, was approved for use by EPA and became the home of the restored NCORE and IMPROVE monitoring stations during fall of 2025.
Replaced aging air monitoring shelter in Thurston County
The Mountain View Elementary School in Lacey has long been the host to ORCAA’s Thurston County air quality monitoring station. For decades, the monitoring equipment was housed in (and on) a small shed built by two former ORCAA employees: ORCAA’s first Air Quality Monitoring Specialist James P. Werner, and ORCAA’s long-time Compliance Manager Robert Moody.
The aging structure was replaced in 2025 with a new shelter installed in August 2025. In November, the ORCAA Board of Directors voted to name the new monitoring station the “James P. Werner Monitoring Station” in honor of our former colleague.
Expanded air monitoring sensor network
In 2025 ORCAA installed additional atmospheric fine particulate sensors across our region. These new sensors, named SensWA, were developed by the Washington Department of Ecology (ECY). As ECY staff builds the new sensors, they are distributed to ECY regional offices and local air agencies. ORCAA deployed SensWA sensors near Yelm in Thurston County, outside Forks in Clallam County, and in Ilwaco in Pacific County. You can find the SensWA sites on ORCAA Air Monitoring map on the ORCAA website.
Promoted open, accessible government
The ORCAA staff and board of directors endorse the idea that governments work best when agencies are open and accessible. With that in mind, in 2025, ORCAA’s public records officer completed state certification as a Certified Public Records Officer. ORCAA also fulfilled 92 public records requests, providing public access to more than 1,500 records related to everything from outdoor burning complaints to business permits and performance. Those records can be found online at ORCAA’s public records portal. In addition, ORCAA’s administrative staff digitized several years of records and sent nearly 40 boxes of old paper files to a shredding service to securely destroy the unneeded documents – with 40 more slated to be shredded early in 2026!
Contracted for new database
As a regulatory authority enforcing local, state, and federal clean air rules, ORCAA maintains detailed permitting and inspection files for more than 600 registered sources. These sources range from small gas stations to large wood processing facilities. ORCAA also manages outdoor burning permits, asbestos and demolition notifications, fields more than 900 burn complaints annually, and tracks a variety of other mission-critical information.
In the interest of improving business practices and maintaining secure and up-to-date records, ORCAA sought new database solutions through a detailed Request for Proposals (RFP) contracting process. After months of research and vendor evaluations, ORCAA has approved plans for a new database.
ORCAA’s Executive Director Jeff Johnston, signed a contract on August 26 with Unicon International to provide a new cloud-based database solution for ORCAA.
Hired new staff
While ORCAA generally enjoys good staff retention, changes do occur. Fortunately, in 2025, ORCAA recruited a few great employees to fill some open positions. Tyson Justis joined ORCAA in February as the new Financial Services Manager. He replaced Lynn Harding who retired from ORCAA in April after 22 years of service. Tyson previously worked for the Thurston Regional Planning Council.
The agency’s Inspection Team filled two Inspector 1 positions by hiring Christian Herr and Rose M. Espinosa Aguilar. They have provided a strong foundation for our dedicated team of inspectors.
Launched a series of how-to videos
The ORCAA website provides easy-to-use online forms for several agency programs. These include asbestos and demolition notification forms, land clearing burn permit forms, and even complaint forms. But like any technical service, sometimes the ‘easy-to-use’ function isn’t always clear and easy.
To help guide people through the processes of using these forms, ORCAA’s inspectors helped produce some simple how-to videos, showing exactly how to use the forms. The videos quickly gained popularity with our web visitors. The complete set can be found on ORCAA’s YouTube channel.
Permit upheld by Pollution Control Hearings Board
On Friday, November 14, 2025, the Washington Pollution Control Hearings Board (PCHB) upheld ORCAA’s air permit to Pacific Northwest Renewal Energy (PNWRE) to establish a wood pellet manufacturing facility in Hoquiam, Washington.
The Notice of Construction (NOC) permit issued by ORCAA on May 14, 2024, was appealed to the PCHB on June 13, 2024. After months of deliberation, the board found that ORCAA’s permit approval met the requirements of both the federal Clean Air Act and Washington’s Clean Air Act. ORCAA’s Final Determination and Order of Approval for NOC application 23NOC1606 are affirmed. The ruling by PCHB is available online. The PCHB decision has been appealed by the original appellants through the court system.
Continued partnership with OlyMAP
The issue of homelessness goes beyond housing challenges. Unhoused residents frequently turn to open fires for survival – for cooking and for warmth. But burning inappropriate materials can result in problem smoke, both for the unhoused and for the residents living near their camps. Since 2023, ORCAA has partnered with Olympia Mutual Air Partners (OlyMAP) to help address illegal burning in homeless camps in Thurston County. OlyMAP staff work directly with the residents of the camps, so they are well suited to help carry ORCAA’s message to the camp residents to encourage safer, cleaner burning practices. They also help address concerns about the burning of prohibited materials by arranging for regular trash pick-up and removal. The partnership between ORCAA and OlyMAP stands as a good example of multiple agencies and associations working together to mitigate problems efficiently and humanely.
Launched New Wood Stove Recycling & Replacement Programs
ORCAA’s latest Wood Stove Recycling and Replacement Award programs launched during the fall of 2025. The programs are available for residents of Clallam, Grays Harbor, Jefferson, Mason, Pacific, and Thurston Counties. The funding is provided by the Washington Department of Ecology through a Wood Smoke Reduction Grant. To participate, visit the ORCAA website or contact your local hearth products or HVAC dealer for more details.
The current rate of support for removing a qualified wood stove is $500 for a simple Recycling Award. Replacement awards vary. Changing over to natural gas or propane stove is $750; changing to an electric fireplace or pellet stove is $1,000; and we offer $2,200 for changing to an electric heat pump – ductless or ducted.