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Contact: Jason Baker, (619) 235-0281 Chula Vistans support relocation of South Bay Power
Plant (San Diego)
– Survey results released on May 7 by Environmental Health Coalition show
that 72 percent of Chula Vistans favor relocating the South Bay Power
Plant from San Diego Bay to an industrial area.
When
told that relocating the plant would reduce environmental hazards, but
also could result in a loss of city revenues, 44 percent of respondents
said it did not change their opinion about relocating the plant, and 27
percent were more in favor of removing the plant. Only 18 percent stated
that the loss of revenue would cause them to be more opposed to removal
of the plant. Douglas S. Coe, Director of the San Diego State
University Research Laboratory, conducted the survey. The results were
compiled from English and Spanish interviews with randomly selected
Chula Vista residents. The results have a plus or minus 4 percent error
margin. “For more than 40 years, the South Bay Power Plant has been relentlessly
damaging the San Diego Bay ecosystem and impacting the health of
residents in South Bay communities,” said Laura Hunter, Director of
EHC’s Clean Bay Campaign.
“These survey results clearly show that Chula Vistans support a change
in this region’s energy strategy that will protect public health and
the future of San Diego Bay.” EHC
released the survey results as part of its comments on the San Diego
Regional Energy Strategy (RES) being developed by members of the
Regional Energy Planning Council (REPAC). EHC has been actively involved
as a non-voting advisory member of the Council since the beginning of
the regional energy planning process. The RES is scheduled for a vote
by the planning council on May 8, and will be sent to the San Diego
Association of Governments for review on May 9. EHC
supports a RES that would require feasible, viable, and protective
alternatives to the once-through wet-cooling system used by the South
Bay Power Plant. Dry-cooling
technology has been used in power plants for 40 years and results in a
reduction of impacts on human health and the environment.
It eliminates the need to use valuable water resources by using
air to cool the power plants, and enjoys no air emissions, no unsightly
plumes, and no impacts on local waterways. Furthermore, dry-cooling
plants can be built anywhere and they are permitted much faster.
The
RES should ensure that regional power needs are met through the use of
indigenous power plants that employ clean and efficient technologies,
and the aggressive deployment of renewable, efficient energy
technologies in the San Diego region. Meeting the energy needs of the
San Diego region through indigenous generation that does not
significantly impact our region’s environment, the health of our
communities, and that promotes quality jobs is the key to the region’s
energy independence. EHC
also believes the RES should reflect a strong commitment to mitigating
the environmental justice impacts of energy generation and transmission
in our region, at the U.S-Mexico Border, and in Mexico. Additionally,
EHC supports the creation of a Regional Energy Authority that is highly
accountable to the public to implement the RES. The
South Bay Power Plant is more than just an eyesore on the Bayfront.
Consider: ·
The
plant emits 3.1 tons of smog-forming pollutants daily, pollutants that
are linked to asthma and other adverse health effects. In fact,
childhood hospitalization rates for asthma in Chula Vista are
significantly higher than the rest of the County.
·
The
plant’s outdated once-through cooling method draws in up to 601
million gallons of Bay water daily, sterilizing nearly 20 percent of the
South Bay while killing and poisoning marine life. ·
The
plant is economically inefficient, with an energy conversion efficiency
of about 38 percent compared to modern power plants, which have design
efficiencies upward of 56 percent. A new plant that generates the same
amount of electricity would use significantly less natural gas and emit
less air pollution. ·
The
location of the plant highlights environmental justice impacts.
According to a 2002 report by the Latino Issues Forum, 89 percent of
plants sited in California during and after the energy “crisis” are
proposed in majority low-income communities and communities of color.
Although this is not a new plant, seventy-seven percent of Chula Vistans
living within a six-mile radius of the plant are Latino or people of
color, with 15 percent living below the poverty line.
These populations located near the plant are at elevated risks
for negative health effects from inhaling the polluted air and toxic
particulate matter. · The power plant is also a blight on the South Bay, inhibiting quality redevelopment of the area, which is long overdue. “There
are no good reasons to keep the South Bay Power Plant,” Hunter said.
“A new plant that utilizes dry-cooling technology and has an
aggressive commitment to conservation and clean, renewable energy
sources is long overdue. This would result in significant benefits to the region,
namely less air and water pollution, as well as the reduction of the use
of hazardous materials. It’s time to move away from energy strategies
that are outdated, inefficient, and compromise the health of our
communities and our ecosystem. EHC and communities throughout the San
Diego region call on the Regional Energy Planning Council to acknowledge
the public’s input and support a RES that aggressively pursues the use
of clean, efficient technologies and renewable technologies that meet
the energy needs of our region without the negative impacts to people
and the environment.” For
more information on EHC’s position on the South Bay Power Plant, log
onto http://www.environmentalhealth.org/DeadlyPowerCover.html
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