The Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council heard a detailed briefing on March 2025 about a private plane crash on Puget Sound Energy-owned land at the Wildhorse Wind Power Project and the operator’s planned cleanup and monitoring actions.

In a report to the council, Jennifer Galbraith, the Wildhorse Wind Power Project representative, said the small private plane went missing March 4. Searchers located the wreckage March 5 on PSE-owned property on the north slope of Whiskey Mountain, roughly half a mile southwest of the Wildhorse substation. A LifeFlight crew found the pilot deceased, and the National Transportation Safety Board and FAA are continuing an investigation, Galbraith said.

Galbraith told the council the pilot likely encountered fast-moving storm conditions, including gusts over 40 mph and sleet and snow that reduced visibility. She said there were no impacts to wind farm infrastructure from the storm or crash.

Why it matters: the crash led to a fuel/fluids contamination response on ecologically sensitive terrain at a renewable energy site. Council members were given specifics about containment, sampling and planned remediation steps that could affect future monitoring and environmental compliance at the site.

Galbraith said Puget Sound Energy opened a Renewable Energy Center to support incident command. After the wreckage was located, PSE contracted geotechnical and remediation teams. Initial field screening and visual observations identified a contaminated area of roughly 50 yards (reported as “approximately 5 50 yards” in the briefing) with contamination largely captured in 2–3 feet of snow and ice, she said. Contractors removed 47 bags of contaminated snow and ice for off-site disposal; to limit ground disturbance, crews did not excavate soil at that time.

Galbraith described planned follow-up steps coordinated with the Department of Ecology: when weather allows, geoengineers will return to collect delineation samples from soil beneath the wreckage, install erosion and sediment controls to limit migration, and apply a bioremediation treatment to the impacted soil. She said verification sampling will follow approximately four to six months after treatment to compare results to state cleanup levels and evaluate whether further action is needed. The cleanup plan was described as an independent remedial action planned to meet cleanup standards under MTCA for unrestricted land use.

Council Chair Kurt Beckett thanked Galbraith for the report and expressed condolences for the pilot.

The council record shows the NTSB dispatched Interstate Aviation to remove wreckage and that the Department of Ecology participated in site coordination. The briefing noted that all cleanup work attempted to minimize additional ground disturbance and used hand methods where feasible.

No formal council action was taken on the item; staff said further sampling and monitoring results will be reported to the council as they become available.