SANDPOINT — Bonner County commissioners are calling on federal regulators to excise Bonner County and the state of Idaho from a Kalispel Tribe proposal to re-designate a Class I air quality zone on its reservation in Washington state.

Commissioners said it did not oppose the tribe’s re-designation, which is meant to preserve current air quality conditions, but it did oppose the designation from crossing state lines.

“We have nothing against the Kalispel Tribe of Indians. We support them as a nation and their efforts to maintain the environment,” commission Chairman Glen Bailey said on Tuesday.

However, commissioners expressed concern that the re-designation would cast a pall on industrial development in Bonner County, particularly in light of increased timber harvests on public lands managed by the U.S. Forest Service.

“If this airspace is re-designated it could have significant impact for our industry in Bonner County. The construction of a wood-processing plant might not meet the requirement of this area designation as I understand it,” Bailey said.

No new timber mills are currently being proposed in Bonner County, although commissioners didn’t want the re-designation to choke out the possibility of such facilities in the future.

Commissioners said they were never contacted by the tribe to discuss the re-designation proposal and subsequent efforts to reach out to the tribe were rebuffed.

“The biggest concern I have is it crossing into Bonner County without having conferred with anyone in Bonner County,” Commissioner Jeff Connolly said.

Connolly added that the designation could also be a deal-breaker if a wood waste-to-energy plant proposal were to emerge.

The air quality re-designation’s bearing on PacWest Silicon’s proposal to develop a silica refining plant south of Newport was also debated on Tuesday. Critics of the re-designation saw no nexus with the smelter proposal, while supporters argued the two matters were directly related.

“The re-designation request from the Kalispel Tribe is directly in response to the threat of a smelter,” said Elizabeth Iha, who is among a legion of residents in Washington and Idaho who view the smelter as an affront to both public health and the environment.

“The potential pollution for Sandpoint would be terrible,” Bonner County resident Jerry Person told the commission.

Robert Zweifel said the board’s position made it sound as though industry was more important than air quality.

“It sounded to me like you’re saying industry is more important than the air that I breathe and my children breathe and I don’t agree with that,” Zweifel told commissioners.

Also in dispute was whether the tribe was obligated to consult with affected counties. Commissioners said language in the proposal made it clear that consultation was required, while supporters of the designation pointed out that the tribe was only obligated to consult local governments within the state of Washington. Either way, Bailey felt consultation with the board could have been done as a courtesy.

“Would have loved to have been included in this process. We asked twice to be included in this process,” Commissioner Dan McDonald said.

Michael Naylor, chairman of Citizens Against the Newport Silicon Smelter, argued McDonald should recuse himself from deliberations on the letter to EPA after video footage surfaced of the commissioner accusing the tribe of taking kickbacks, comments which Naylor called “racist and bigoted.” McDonald objected to Naylor’s characterization and declined to withdraw from the board’s deliberations.

The board’s approval of the letter to EPA outlining its concerns and objections to the re-designation cleared the board on a unanimous vote.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.