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Op / Ed - Viewpoint

Rethinking AES Power Plant On Los Cerritos Wetlands: We Can Do Better
by Elizabeth Lambe, Executive Director, Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust


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LBREPORT.com will carry LIVE VIDEO of the CA Energy Comm'n hearing described below. It will be on our front page at www.LBREPORT.com, either as embedded/framed content or linked with a click (whichever is technically feasible using the state agency-provided video/audio feeds.) For background, see LBREPORT.com preview coverage at this link.
(November 14, 2016, 4:20 p.m.) -- Tuesday Nov. 15 is the day. The California Energy Commission (CEC) will be in Long Beach to take testimony on the proposed AES Power plant "re-power" project. [LBREPORT.com preview coverage at this link.]

We will be there, capably represented by energy expert Bill Powers and legal expert April Sommer -- to do our part to ensure the fragile habitat and wildlife of Los Cerritos Wetlands are protected.


Meet our experts.

A registered professional engineer, Bill Powers has extensive knowledge and experience in the fields of energy and environmental engineering, air emissions control, and regional energy planning. As the owner and principal of Powers Engineering, Mr. Powers works with clients throughout the United States and Latin America, providing expert testimony and analysis, strategic planning, and equipment testing for public sector and private industry clients. Mr. Powers has authored technical studies on a variety of energy-related topics,

April Rose Sommer is Executive Director of the Protect Our Communities Foundation. Previously, Ms. Sommer was a Staff Attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity where she challenged development of dirty utilities infrastructure and advocated for clean energy in practice before the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), CEC, air districts, and appellate courts. Ms. Sommer specializes in energy, non-profit, and public forum litigation and appeals. Additionally, she has fought state and federal approvals of new fossil-fueled power plants, ill-conceived development of natural places, and government corruption.

Given that California is moving so swiftly towards renewable energy, there are alternatives to polluting generators like the ones proposed for here at Alamitos. That is because many new gas-fired power plants have been built in the L.A. Basin in recent years, and there is more renewable energy being generated regionally, as well as locally in the form of roof-top solar. Plus we are using energy more efficiently. Therefore, even though there continue to be more and more people in California, our demand for energy has remained flat.

It is also important to remember that the Alamitos power plant was built where coastal wetlands once existed. The dredging and filling of those wetlands for this and other projects was done before scientists understood the enormous value of wetlands. And the noise of the generators, and the air emissions falling on the wetlands, is a constant source of habitat degradation that impairs restoration. Finally, the cooling water system, and the intake and mortality of marine life, has likewise made restoration challenging for decades.

In hindsight it was clearly a costly mistake to build these power plants in coastal wetlands. And those decisions and others have left the state with about 5% of historical coastal wetland areas, making restoration a daunting challenge. We can't blame our parents' generation for mistakes they clearly didn't understand. But we know better now. What we can do now is not repeat those mistakes. Even better yet, when the timing is right, as it is now, we can try to undue some of the unintentional errors of the past--and try to provide a better future for our children and their children.

We think the CEC through this process can, and should, review "feasible" alternatives that would improve on what the CPUC decided was a "reasonable effort" by Southern California Edison to contract for preferred resources. And we plan to argue that point of view tomorrow.

So please make plans to attend the hearing. We encourage you to share your views during the public comment portion of the hearing. Details are below.

What: California Energy Commission Evidentiary Hearing
When: Tuesday, November 15th, 2016
Evidentiary Hearing Begins at noon, 12:00 p.m.
Public Comment Period Begins at 3:00 p.m.
Where: The Grand Events Center, Catalina Room, 4101 E. Willow Street, LB 90815

And remember: You can follow the CEC hearing on www.LBREPORT.com. A CEC hearing in Long Beach is such an unusual event. Make sure you take some time to check in with the proceedings, or better yet, make plans to attend.


Opinions expressed by LBREPORT.com, our contributors and/or our readers are not necessary those of our advertisers. We welcome our readers' comments/opinions 24/7 via Disqus, Facebook and moderate length letters and longer-form op-ed pieces submitted to us at mail@LBReport.com.


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