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Welcome!
There is a new development in process which is focusing on the Broader
Picture for commercializing our deserts in California and five other western
states with massive solar power plants. Besides the actual solar panel fields,
there will be natural gas power plants to produce energy when solar isn’t
producing. This could result in the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) leasing up
to one million acres of BLM managed public lands for development of renewable
and other forms of energy generation. There is only 14 million acres of BLM
managed public land in the entire state, and 11 million of those acres are in
Southern California. Glenda and I attended one of the Scoping meetings for this
massive project in Riverside last month. Besides those who are opposed to
developing our public desert lands, the CPUC, BLM, the Federal Dept of Energy
and the California Energy Commission were there. They all showed their eagerness
to “get on with this project”. And many large solar companies came from as far
as Germany to speak about how we should develop our deserts.
Obviously, if this massive development is approved, the utilities’ will
benefit with the construction of additional transmission lines all over our
deserts, and those lines will ultimately end up in the metro areas. And massive
projects like this may even get approved even though they cost more money than
rooftop solar systems (Stirling Solar) and the technology is unproven (Stirling
Solar). I recommend you get informed by attending a Scoping meeting in El Centro
on July 10th at 6pm at the location shown above. This new project is called the
Solar Energy Development Programmatic EIS (PEIS). This is serious stuff, which I
call the Broader Picture. We need to get informed.
I strongly suggest that we all consider getting out to El Centro on Thursday
July 10th at 6PM. The website for registering is at
http://solareis.anl.gov/involve/pubschedule/index.cfm.
NEWS FLASH!
SDG&E decides not to buy power from a modernized,
efficient Chula Vista plant! 660MW will need to be generated elsewhere. That
along with a reduction of 340MW from the Encina plan modernization brings a loss
of 1,000MW. Rather than having localized generation, SDG&E opts to bring
replacement energy via invasive 1,000MW Sunrise Powerlink. (See
News
page for additional details) Jim Avery, Sr. Vice President of SDG&E states that
they are confident it can meet the region's power needs without Chula
Vista. Does reliable generation mean producing energy in Mexico and shipping it
through the mountains, deserts, back-country, and suburbs of San Diego and
Imperial Counties while abandoning modernized local energy? How does this
improve the energy situation in San Diego? These are questions that need to be
addressed to the California Public Utilities Commission! 
CUSP Mission Statement
We, the community members of CUSP, are allied for sustainable, renewable and
reliable energy produced locally securing our energy independence for the future
needs of San Diego County. We support the creation of a modern, diverse and
economical energy supply. We also support conservation of energy resources and
environmentally sound energy generation to preserve our communities and the
beauty of our collective natural world. We are opposed to Sunrise PowerLink.
Why Do We Oppose Sunrise PowerLink?
Because we are Communities United for Sensible Power The CUSP coalition
supports the creation of a modern, diverse and economical energy supply for San
Diego County. However, we feel that the Sunrise Powerlink does not fulfill these
objectives. We believe there are more efficient, local alternatives that better
address our reliability and renewable energy needs. We believe these
alternatives are a more responsible approach with less harmful impacts on our
parks, preserves and communities.
 | Given what we now know about the dangers, inefficiencies and other
negative impacts of remote generation and long transmission lines, the Sunrise
Powerlink is an antiquated and unenlightened approach to solving our future
energy needs. |
| With the Sunrise Powerlink, SDG&E is proposing 150 miles of industrial and
destructive transmission towers, lines and roads through supposedly protected
open space and habitats such as Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Boulder Oaks
Preserve, Del Mar Mesa Preserve, and the Los Penasquitos Preserve. In other
places such as Scripps Ranch, Rancho Penasquitos, Carmel Valley, Torrey Hills
and San Diego Country Estates, the preferred route would be constructed in
neighborhoods, close to homes and community gathering places, making this
transmission line a visible, audible blight upon our communities and local
preserves as well as a fire and health hazard to nearby residents. |
| Energy experts have demonstrated that reliability can be more
cost-effectively obtained by adding in-county generation. SDG&E’s
“transmission first” strategy is in contradiction to the San Diego Regional
Energy Strategy 2030 and the state recommended loading order which stress
maximizing energy efficiency, demand reduction, distributed generation and
renewables before transmission as preferred strategies to attaining our energy
needs. |
| Renewable energy in the Imperial Valley can be exported using the already
existing Southwest Powerlink (SWPL) transmission line (provided the SWPL line
isn’t congested with Sempra’s fossil fueled energy traveling from Mexico
through San Diego to points north) or with the IID/LADWP Green Path Powerlink
already in the works. |
| Congestion costs from 2006 onward are projected by CAISO to be quite low
due to SWPL upgrades and the Miguel-to-Mission No. 2 transmission project, not
to mention the April 2006 court order instructing Sempra to stop deliberate
congestion on the SWPL. |
| This proposed $1.4 billion power line project will be paid for by
ratepayers without their vote or approval and maximizes Sempra’s shareholder
value not ratepayer value. SDG&E is allowed to include 10-15% profit on any
infrastructure the PUC authorizes it to construct. SDG&E gets no mark-up from
buying power from third parties, like Encina or South Bay or even Sterling
Solar. SDG&E has a big monetary incentive to squeeze out other power
suppliers, which is one of the reasons why they won’t sign long-term contracts
to modernize the coastal power plants and why the Sterling Solar contract will
likely fail. |
| Bottom line? We - the public ratepayers - are expected to pay for SDG&E's
new connection to their parent's Mexican power plants (with a profit to SDG&E)
that are going to be fed with natural gas from Sempra's new LNG terminal in
Ensenada, Mexico. They get to crush the competition from the local
generators by not buying from them (Encina and Chula Vista) and forcing us
to make up the deficit in supply from their own plants far away. |
What Are The Alternatives?
State law and the San Diego Regional Energy Strategy 2030 stress a loading
order that promotes energy efficiency, demand reduction, distributed generation
and the use of renewable energy resources and cleaner, modernized plants within
San Diego County as preferred strategies to attaining our energy needs. Below
are just some of the alternatives that better achieve these objectives:
| Modernize and relocate the South
Bay and Encina power plants to be more efficient and less polluting: The
Sunrise Powerlink will cost close to $1.4 billion and will provide no energy
in and of itself. A new power plant in San Diego would cost less than half
that much. Current plans to reduce the capacity of Encina and
eliminate power purchases from Chula Vista will make us more reliant on
importing energy. |
| Developing in-county solar power programs like the Governor’s Million
Solar Roof Initiative and requiring SDG&E to buy back the power they receive
from homeowners generating excess power: California is the only state where
the energy utility does not purchase excess power generated by homeowners. We
need programs that better promote the use of renewable energy for consumers
and utilities. |
| Promoting distributed generation within the county: Distributed energy
would improve the efficiency, reliability, quality and security of the power
supply. Smaller, local power plants are ideally suited for emerging new energy
technologies – fuel cells, wind turbines, rooftop solar electric devices and
micro-generators and small power plants have an efficiency level double or
better that of a regional power plant. This has the added benefit of creating
permanent jobs locally. |
Who are the Communities in CUSP?
| Borrego Springs – Citizens United for Responsible Energy (CURE) |
| Canebrake - Canebrake Community Group (CCG) |
| Carmel Valley- Carmel Valley Concerned Citizens (CVCC)
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| Julian / Wynola - Peoples PowerLink (PPL)
; Back Country Coalition (BCC) |
| Ocotillo Wells - Ocotillo Wells Citizens Alliance for Responsible Energy (OWCARE)
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| Ramona – Mussey Grade Road Alliance
(MGRA) |
| Ranchita, San Felipe, Warner Springs, Sunshine Summit, Chihuahua Valley,
Santa Ysabel, Mesa Grande, and Lake Henshaw –
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| Rancho Penasquitos -
Rancho Penasquitos Concerned Citizens (RPCC)
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| Torrey Pines - Torrey Pines Concerned Citizens (TPCC) |
Any community that is impacted by this power line project is welcome in CUSP!
Page last updated
07/09/2008.
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