Ranch Quarry Mine Public Comment Site

Ranch Quarry Mine Public Comment Site

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Ranch Quarry Environmental Impact Statement – End of Scoping Phase and Next Steps

Thank you to those who took the time to provide comments on the scope of the Ranch Quarry Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The scoping comment period began on April 29 and ended on May 29, 2026. 

Whatcom County and consultant team staff will carefully review the submitted comments and prepare the draft EIS, which will include additional technical analyses and reports. Members of the public will have an opportunity to provide comments on the draft EIS when it is released in late summer or fall 2026.  

For more information and updates, please visit the Ranch Quarry proposal webpage. The Ranch Quarry FAQs have also been updated to reflect questions we received from the community during the scoping phase.

Regional map showing the approximate location of the proposed Ranch Quarry site in Whatcom County, Washington. Nearby communities include Sumas, Nooksack, Everson, Kendall, and Maple Falls. An inset site map highlights the project site boundary in blue, the mining area boundary in red, and the access road in yellow.
Regional Map (click to view larger map)

The applicant (Cowden, Inc.) is proposing to create a new approximately 64-acre open-pit rock quarry on an approximately 108-acre site near Sumas, Washington. The site is located along the north side of South Pass Road and west of Frost Road, and is within Whatcom County’s Mineral Resource Lands district, which designates and protects areas with significant mineral deposits, such as sand, gravel, and stone, for extraction.  

 The site is currently forested, and approximately 65 acres of timber would be cleared for the proposed project. Access to the quarry would be provided via an existing paved private driveway off South Pass Road. Normal operations are expected to involve about 25 trucks entering and exiting the site daily to transport mined material, with traffic potentially doubling during seasonal peak operations. On-site rock sorting and crushing activities would also occur in addition to the mining operations. Quarry activities would occur during operating hours approved by Whatcom County.   

 Material produced from the quarry would be used to support the construction and maintenance of civil infrastructure, such as roads, railroads, and ports as well as for private construction projects throughout the region. The quarry would be mined in four phases over the estimated life expectancy of 50 years; however, the actual lifespan of the quarry would be dependent on supply and economic market conditions. 

Additional information on the proposed project can be found on the County’s Ranch Quarry project webpage.

As Whatcom County has determined that the proposed project may have significant adverse environmental impacts, a State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is required and will be prepared.

An EIS is the most rigorous and comprehensive type of environmental review required under SEPA and involves a review of the potential environmental impacts of a proposal and its alternatives. An EIS must inform decision-makers and the public of reasonable alternatives, environmental impacts, and mitigation measures that would avoid or minimize adverse impacts or enhance environmental quality.

The Ranch Quarry EIS will include a wide range of environmental elements for analysis. Whatcom County has preliminarily identified the following elements for analysis:

  • Earth
  • Air quality and greenhouse gases
  • Surface water and groundwater
  • Plants, animals, and wetlands
  • Historic and cultural resources
  • Noise
  • Environmental health
  • Land use and relationship to plans and policies
  • Transportation

Whatcom County has also preliminarily determined two alternatives for analysis in the EIS. These alternatives include:

  • Alternative 1 – Proposed Action. This is the alternative under which the current proposed project would be constructed.
  • Alternative 2 – No Action. This is the alternative under which the proposed project would not be constructed and provides a baseline for comparing the impacts of the Proposed Action.

Whatcom County anticipates that the Ranch Quarry EIS will follow the timeline below:

  • April – May 2026: Scoping Phase
  • Summer/Fall 2026: Draft EIS Phase
  • Winter 2026/Early 2027: Final EIS Phase

The scoping phase comment period is primarily intended to provide the public and interested parties with an opportunity to comment on the subject of review and alternatives to be considered within the EIS. After the Scoping phase is complete, a Draft EIS will be prepared. The Draft EIS will analyze impacts of the alternatives to the identified elements of the environment for review. An additional comment period will be held to receive comments on the completed analyses after the Draft EIS is published. Comments received on the Draft EIS will be addressed within the Final EIS, along with any potential updates to the project and associated analysis, if necessary. The recommendation by the County will be submitted to the County Hearing Examiner, who will ultimately make the decision on the proposed project permit application.

Additional information on the proposed project and its EIS process can be found on the County’s Ranch Quarry project webpage.

Satellite map of a rural, forested area showing the proposed project site. The overall project site boundary is outlined in blue, and the proposed mining area is outlined in red within the site. A yellow access road connects the site to an existing access road on the west. S Pass Road and Paradise Valley Road run along the southern and eastern edges of the map, and Sadie Creek is shown to the east.
Vicinity Map (click to view larger map)