Resources & References

Our intent with the PNWH2 Hub is not to incorporate an abundance of new pipelines. Simply said, that means we will limit the number of pipelines for our projects and use them only for local storage. A large, regional hydrogen distribution pipeline is not part of the PNWH2 Hub. The initial phases of the Hub may include some short-run pipelines (up to 20 miles) between production sites and end-users for local storage only.

The PNWH2 Hub’s projects will produce electrolytic hydrogen from the region’s abundant and growing renewable electricity and non-stressed water sources – bringing environmentally responsible and sustainable solutions to market. While new solar and wind energy projects are not part of the PNWH2 Hub, our projects are working closely with renewable electricity project developers to ensure a stable, growing supply of clean energy is available to meet hydrogen production needs. This is in alignment with analyses like the 2021 Washington State Energy Strategy that anticipate a need to approximately double renewable capacity by 2050.

Hydrogen will be stored at production and use sites using industry standard technologies, building on the decades of experience in handling hydrogen by our team members. Private industry and government agencies have safely produced and used hydrogen for decades. Approximately 10 million tons of hydrogen are produced annually in the United States to make products like gasoline, silicon chips and food products like peanut butter. Safety is paramount for this industry and will be for our efforts as well. Additionally, we plan to engage with first responders, K-12 schools, higher education, community organizations and tribal governments on a variety of programs, including hydrogen safety awareness and training.

The PNWH2 Hub team used environmental justice mapping tools such as the Environmental Health Disparities (EHD) map in Washington state and other environmental, health, economic, risk and hazard or related databases during planning. These tools helped identify geographic areas where the benefits of the proposed PNWH2 Hub projects and activities can have the biggest impact in improving health and well-being, providing economic opportunity, and reducing harmful impacts to the environment.