9-22-09

 
9-22-09
Badlands Journal
What is Cardoza afraid of?...Badlands Journal editorial board
http://www.badlandsjournal.com/2009-09-21/007423
As things stand, the CPC -- not the unreliable and unfocused Blue Dogs and certainly not the Democratic Leadership Council-aligned "New Democrats," who come with more corporate strings attached than many Republicans -- are the best strategic and practical allies that the president has. By adopting the CPC line with regard to the public option, Obama could energize the base that elected him and turn this into a real fight, bringing savvy inside-outside political operations like that of Progressive Democrats of America into the thick of the struggle and activating the crowds that turned out in cities across the country last week for the "Mad As Hell Doctors" tour on behalf of "Medicare for All." -- John Nichols, The Nation, 9-21-09
I saw a play 50 years ago in which a judge, blindfolded and ears muffled, sat down to  "hear" a case, stretching both hands out to either side, palms up to weigh the weight of the sacks of gold placed in his hands. Reading in recent weeks of our congressman's refusal to hold town hall meetings on healthcare reform on the absurdly insulting pretext that people have opinions about healthcare, a similar image keeps coming to mind: a Blue Dog congressman, in boots and hat, riding a fence, with upraised palms stretched out to both sides, seeking "balance."
The only reason the public option is even on the table is because of strong support for Medicare-for-all, or a single-payer plan.
There appear to be a number of people involved locally in the healthcare debate who failed to see in the last decade any relationship between healthcare and environmental issues. Not having participated in those battles, they are apparently unaware -- despite having their noses rubbed in it -- of the level of political depravity among politicians who represent the various jurisdictions in Merced County. We are about to see the charade of politics based on "access to officials" played out regarding the City of Merced approval of the WalMart distribution center, a project with public health consequences to Merced.
There is a fundamental difference between personal access to officials, a small meeting behind closed doors in confidentiality, and a town hall meeting open to any member of the public and the press.
Although Dennis Cardoza was too sensitive a congressman to have a town hall meeting in his district, Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa, had the courage and courtesy to hold one in Oakdale in his district. Five hundred people showed up and the issue was debated, along with some hooting and hollering, apparently not beyond Radanovich's ability to cope with. We do not agree with Radanovich's views on healthcare reform -- healthcare in the nation appears to have taken just about all the "free-market solutions" it and we can stand -- but he deserves our respect for doing the simple and honest thing Cardoza refused to do: hold a town hall meeting and listen to constituents.
Last week, a forum on healthcare reform was held at Merced College. It was well attended and three positions were well argued by the panel: the public-option, single-payer, and the free-market positions. The fourth seat in the panel was empty. It had been reserved for Congressman Cardoza's office to argue the Blue Dog position. That was probably apt because Cardoza and the Blue Dogs deny they have a position beyond saying that whatever reform is approved must be fiscally responsible. Blue Dogs represent some of the most highly subsidized agricultural districts in the nation. Cardoza wants Congress to declare the San Joaquin Valley an "economic hardship zone" to attract more federal funds, the state and federal government underwrote the construction of the main dams and canals of the entire San Joaquin Valley irrigation system, and Cardoza led the campaign for approval of UC Merced in the state Legislature, the great boondoggle gift of public funds to developers that is the main cause for Merced having one of the top five foreclosure rates in the nation. The highway interchange that will shortly be home to the WalMart Distribution Center was another gift of public funds to his district. Nevertheless, one can't be too "fiscally responsible" on health care.
Whatever his campaign-war chest or pork aims are, what do they have to do with refusing to hold town hall meetings on healthcare, in which the legislator, according to one of the oldest political customs in the US, is supposed to listen to what his constituents think about the issues? As simply as we can put it, when a legislator refuses to listen to his constituents on an issue as important as healthcare, he is forfeiting his right to represent them. It is not an issue of his personal views. Legislators frequently vote their own convictions even if they vary with those of their constituents. But they have an obligation to hear their constituents' views -- and we do not mean just special interests -- in open, public forum.
As one constituent said, "Cardoza has been able to mislead and schmooze his constituents for a long time. What is he afraid of?" 
Lack of intelligible, competent political leadership in this region at this time is inexcusable. Cardoza is behaving like a spoiled child of the Bubble.
Badlands Journal editorial board
9-19-09
Modesto Bee
Radanovich fields health questions...Sue Nowicki
http://www..modbee.com/local/v-print/story/860336.html
OAKDALE — There were a few boos and yells, but the mood was mostly affirming and civil in Friday afternoon's town hall meeting on health care reform, hosted by Rep. George Radanovich, R-Mariposa.
More than 500 people attended the event at the Oakdale Community Center.
Nearly 100 people, ranging from teenagers to people in their 80s and on both sides of the
issue, asked questions or made comments in the 2½-hour session.
Radanovich opened the meeting by explaining proposed bills in the House and Senate, but added that they are changing all the time. He said Democratic-backed bills will lead to large increases in taxes and the federal deficit, eventually eliminate many private insurance plans, and cut Medicare and Medicaid benefits.
Congress instead should focus, he said, on insurance reform, making insurance affordable and portable across state lines, and work on insurance for catastrophic care and the
poor.
"Health care is incredibly important," he said. "Your views need to be on the table."
Joel Chase, 43, of Oakdale, said he decided to attend because "I've never been to a town hall meeting before. I thought I'd do my civic duty and come out."
The former cargo plane pilot was jobless for much of this year. Chase said he is a conservative who is concerned about attempts to nationalize health care.
"I want to know what they're going to do to stop government takeover or control of the health care system," he said.
One woman, who identified herself as a college instructor, said one of her students wants to know how her family can financially support their 6-year-old son, who is deaf and unable to receive California's Healthy Families medical care.
A college student asked what impact the cost of national health care will have on rising
education costs, which have been coupled with decreasing financial aid.
"Your generation has special challenges not encountered by any other generation since
World War II," Radanovich acknowledged.
One man who said he works at a Turlock skilled nursing facility said cuts to Medicare and Medicaid programs already have hurt seniors there, and that further cuts in proposed health care legislation will put more elderly patients at risk.
"What's going to ensure that seniors' needs are going to be cared for when they need it?" he asked.
But one senior citizen in a T-shirt that read "Health care not warfare" told Radanovich, "We can take care of our people here if we're not in these military actions halfway around the world. What can I do to convince you that you're wrong?"
Dr. Delmar Tonge, a Modesto physician, agreed that "there are problems in medical care."
But he added, "If a person comes in with a broken leg, don't schedule him for a cardiac transplant," implying that proposed national health care is as dramatic a move.
Radanovich several times answered opponents by saying he favors the free market approach to reducing health care costs.
One woman took issue with that: "Health care profits are outrageous. How can we deal with these outrageous profits caused by the free market?"
Janel Groenewoud, 23, said she "got kicked off of my parents' health insurance policy."
But she opposes the proposed plans.
"How can the government tell me, 'You must be on health insurance?' " she asked. "I take vitamins. I exercise. If I have to go to the doctor, I pay, at the most, $100. I choose not to (buy insurance) because it's not economical for me."
She added that her parents immigrated to this country from the Netherlands "where they have universal health care."
With tears, Groenewoud told of an elderly grandmother who is afraid of being euthanized if she is hospitalized and an aunt who has a heart tumor. "She's been told she is too old for treatment — and she's only 50. You think they're not going to do that here, but they
will. It will happen. It will," she cried.
Applause broke out several times, as when a man said, "It seems immoral for us to vote for things we like and stick the bill on those who aren't even born."
The biggest burst of applause, and laughter, came when a man complimented Radanovich.
"Thank you for being able to stand up for the last two hours without a teleprompter," the man said.
On the Net: Find more about Rep. George Radanovich's position on health care at
www.radanovich. house.gov.
9-21-09
The Nation
What Obama Should've Said on the Talk Shows...John Nichols
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2009/09/21-5
President Obama did all the Sunday morning talk shows, as part of a ramped-up campaign to promote his sincere if ill-defined belief that health care should be reformed. and he continued to argue, albeit tepidly, that this reform probably needs to include a public option.
Obama was smooth and smart and presidential and the appearances on ABC's "This Week," CBS's "Face the Nation," NBC's "Meet the Press," CNN's "State of the Union" and on the Spanish-language Univision network will undoubtedly aid his personal approval ratings.
But these exercises in pulled punches and anti-government apologia will do little to advance the cause of genuine health care reform.
Indeed, as Obama describes his notion of a public option, it is so constrained, under-funded and uninspired in approach as to be dysfunctional.
While there is no question that the right reform remains a single-payer "Medicare for All" system that provides quality care for all Americans while eliminating insurance company profiteering, if the best that can be hoped for is a government-supported alternative to the corporate options, then it should be robust enough to compete.
That's what Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chair Raul Grijalva, D-Arizona, is proposing on behalf of the CPC, which now numbers more than 80 House members.
Grijalva says, "The CPC will do its best to ensure that the public option is as close to Medicare as we can get it."
To that end, he says caucus members will use their key committee positions and needed votes to promote "a robust public option that:
•Enacts concurrently with other significant expansions of coverage and must not be conditioned on private industry actions.
•Consists of one entity, operated by the federal government, which sets policies and bears the risk for paying medical claims to keep administrative costs low and provide a higher standard of care.
•Be made available to all individuals and employers across the nation without limitation.
•Allows patients to have access to their choice of doctors and other providers that meet defined participation standards, similar to the traditional Medicare model, promotes the medical home model and eliminates lifetime caps on benefits.
•Has the ability to structure the provider rates to promote quality care, primary care,
prevention, chronic care management and good public health.
•Utilizes the existing infrastructure of successful public programs, such as Medicare, in order to maintain transparency and consumer protections for administering processes, including payment systems, claims and appeals.
•Establishes or negotiates rates with pharmaceutical companies, durable medical equipment providers and other providers to achieve the lowest prices for consumers.
•Receives a level of subsidy and support that is no less than that received by private
plans.
•Ensures premiums are priced at the lowest levels possible, not tied to the rates of private insurance plans.
That's the outline of a real public option -- one that is robust enough to fight for.
Indeed, if President Obama had outlined it during his Sunday morning television appearances, the cause of real reform would have gotten the boost it needed.
As things stand, the CPC -- not the unreliable and unfocused Blue Dogs and certainly not the Democratic Leadership Council-aligned "New Democrats," who come with more corporate strings attached than many Republicans -- are the best strategic and practical allies that the president has. By adopting the CPC line with regard to the public option, Obama could energize the base that elected him and turn this into a real fight, bringing savvy inside-outside political operations like that of Progressive Democrats of America into the thick of the struggle and activating the crowds that turned out in cities across the
country last week for the "Mad As Hell Doctors" tour on behalf of "Medicare for All."
By significantly muscling up his public-option proposal, the president could also give the labor movement's most determined organizers (who are, invariably, single-payer backers) something to sink their teeth into.
Obama can still get a public option.
But he needs to understand that the public option is, itself, a compromise. It falls short of the "Medicare for All" model favored by serious reformers.
As such, the president cannot compromise the compromise.
He needs to take seriously the standards outlined by Grijalva and the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Indeed, he needs to incorporate them into his agenda. The right will scream in opposition. But the right is already screaming in opposition. Obama needs to get the left screaming in support of real reform.
Merced Sun-Star
Wal-Mart distribution center decision day approaching
Both sides present arguments to City Council; public's chance to speak later this week...SCOTT JASON
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/v-print/story/1070420.html
The showdown on the proposed Wal-Mart distribution center began Monday with supporters and opponents showing up in force to sway the Merced City Council to their sides.
More than 100 residents packed City Hall for the first of four meetings about the controversial project.
Some Wal-Mart backers wore giant pins with the word "jobs" printed in large letters.
Opponents wore stickers that said, "Protect our families: No to Wal-Mart."
None was permitted to speak. As a result, the crowd began to dwindle by 9 p.m. and was almost gone a half-hour later.
The council heard only from Merced Planning Manager Kim Espinosa, Wal-Mart spokesman Aaron Rios and opposition attorney Keith Wagner.
Espinosa gave an overview of the project, its impact and its benefits. City staff and the Planning Commission have recommended its approval.
Rios touted Wal-Mart's commitment to green business practices and its focus on improving its truck fleet's efficiency. He noted that the average wage at a distribution center is $17.50 an hour.
Wagner, a Sacramento attorney working for Merced Alliance for Responsible Growth, or MARG, called the environmental review "inadequate," asking the city to revise it and to hold off on voting on the project.
"The problem is many of the legal standards have not been followed," Wagner told the council.
Members of the public will have their chance to speak up 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. Wednesday and 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. The council is expected to vote on the project on Monday.
Each council member, except Mayor Ellie Wooten, asked Espinosa specific questions about the project, focused on sewer lines, drainage, traffic patterns and landscaping.
None of the elected officials indicated how they'd vote.
Mayor Pro Tem John Carlisle and Councilman Joe Cortez both supported having Wal-Mart build a dirt berm on the project's western edge.
"I think it's an important aspect," Carlisle noted. "It's designed to buffer, shield or hide the project from passersby on the Campus Parkway."
The council meeting began with the council's regular business before moving onto the hearing for Wal-Mart's project, a 1.1 million-square-foot distribution center on 230 acres between Childs and Gerard avenues.
Wal-Mart says it will employ 900 full-time workers and have 643 daily truck trips -- a tractor-trailer rig either coming or going. The center will be running all week at all hours.
If approved, Wal-Mart will pay more than $4 million in impact fees.
The meeting included one outburst, related to MARG's appeal of the Planning Commission's vote on the project last month.
Opposition attorney Wagner stated his case about why the commission should have approved part of the plan not just recommend its approval. After taking his seat, Wagner interrupted Rios' rebuttal, saying that he wasn't addressing the appeal. Wooten told Wagner his time was up and asked him to be quiet.
City Attorney Greg Diaz said Rios needed to address the appeal. Rios showed an animated video of what a driver would see if they were on Campus Parkway and the center was built.
"It has nothing to do with the appeal," Wagner muttered from his seat.
Rios said the appeal was nothing but an attempt to stall the project. Wooten then continued the hearing to Wednesday, when members of the public will have a chance to speak about the distribution center.
Quarter of $4.5B stimulus for high-speed rail will go to Valley section...SCOTT JASON
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/v-print/story/1070428.html
Roughly a quarter of the $4.5 billion in federal stimulus money California's seeking for its high-speed rail project will be spent on the Merced-to-Bakersfield section.
The money, along with matching dollars from last year's bond measure, will be used to finish more environmental studies and to build the high-speed rail tracks along Highway 99.
"This is how we're going to put the Central Valley economy on the fast-track to recovery," said Assemblywoman Cathleeen Galgiani, D-Stockton.
Galgiani carried the high-speed rail bill that went before voters.
Officials from across the state were briefed on the funding request during a Monday conference call. The California High Speed Rail Authority will vote Wednesday on the application. It must be turned in to the federal government by Oct. 2.
The authority expects to know how much money it will get in three to four months.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act set aside $8 billion for high-speed rail systems. California is a front-runner for much of the money because of how much progress it's already made on building a statewide rail system, Galgiani said.
The state passed a bond measure last year and the train should speed through the Valley at 220 miles per hour, making it a true high-speed rail system, she explained.
Also, four countries with high-speed rail systems have pledged to offer advice and suggestions as California's project develops, Galgiani noted. The state also won approval from the federal government on a key piece of environmental work.
"California's plan is a sound plan that has already gone through significant hurdles," she said.
The federal stimulus money, about $1.25 billion for the Valley, will be spent on laying tracks, building underpasses and modifying the highway to accomodate the bullet train. Construction would likely begin in 2011 and must finish by 2017.
If the application is approved, about $2 billion will go to the Anaheim-to-Los Angeles route and $1.2 billion will go to the San Jose-to-San Francisco section.
Study in diversity: UC Merced campus a true melting pot...DANIELLE GAINES
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/v-print/story/1070425.html
Undergrads
There is no ethnic majority in the student body ranks at UC Merced. In fall 2008, 33 percent of students were Asian, 30.1 percent Latino, 24.1 percent white, and 6.5 percent black.
UC Merced is the only undergraduate campus in the system with a majority of male bachelor's candidates on campus, representing 53.3 percent of the student body.
The campus is also home to a socio-economically diverse crowd. Just more than 50 percent of undergrads are the first in their families to attend college, and 41 percent are from lower-income homes.
Finally, 17.2 percent of students did not learn English as their first language.
Riverside is the only UC campus that is federally declared as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, a designation that requires an undergraduate population that's at least 25 percent Latino. UC Merced's undergraduate Latino population was larger, but the campus will not receive the designation until it is fully accredited. "We have already had conversations with the Department of Education. They are very aware of us and the students we are serving," Lawrence said.
Graduate students
In fall 2008, the campus enrolled 184 graduate students. Eighty-five percent were doctoral students, while 15 percent were pursuing master's degrees.
A vast majority, 73 percent, of graduate students were male.
There is also no majority ethnic group among the graduate student ranks on campus. Last year, 35 percent of grad students were studying internationally, 29 percent were white, 12 percent Hispanic, 8.7 percent Asian, and 1.1 percent black.
Faculty
As of fall 2008, there were 170 full-time faculty members at UC Merced.
Thirty-eight percent of faculty members were female.
White professors form the majority at each UC campus, including Merced where they represent 61 percent of the subgroup.
UC Merced boasts the highest percentage of Latino professors in the system, with 12 percent.
Still, the campus has no African-American faculty members. According to the report, "to the degree that recruitment of additional faculty occurs in this period of financial stringency, the campus will continue to work vigorously to further diversify the faculty ranks, with a continued focus on recruitment of African-American faculty."
Staff
Men formed the majority of staff members on campus, at 67 percent.
Most staff members on campus, 53 percent, were white. The rest of the staff was 28 percent Latino, nine percent Asian, and four percent black.
Each year, the campus advertises in a special "Diversity in Academe" issue of the Chronicle of Higher Education to improve diversity in job searches.
Stem Cell Awareness Day at UC Merced...Danielle Gaines
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/167/v-print/story/1070429.html
UC Merced will observe Stem Cell Awareness Day on Wednesday with presentations highlighting the interdisciplinary research of the UC Merced Stem Cell Consortium, a faculty research group on campus.
Professors Maria Pallavicini, Marcos Garcia-Ojeda and Nestor Oviedo will provide a short introduction to stem cells and an update on the campus' planned Stem Cell Instrumentation Foundry.
The event is free and open to the public, and will be held in Room 105 of the Classroom and Office Building.
Stem Cell Awareness day is an international celebration that aims to foster greater understanding about stem cell research and the range of potential applications for disease and injury, according to the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
"Stem Cell Awareness Day was created as a way to spread information and excitement about this field and to reutilize those grass roots to keep the pressure on everyone to further accelerate the field," CIRM president Alan Trounson said.
For more information about stem cell research at UC Merced, visit stemcells.ucmerced.edu.
Letter: Need safeguards...GLEN PETERS, Merced
http://www.mercedsunstar.com/180/v-print/story/1070411.html
Editor: Thanks, Rep. George Radanovich, for appearing in Oakdale. Now I feel like we are represented. Now represent us -- no socialized government-operated Medicare.
Instead, put safeguards in place to stop outrageous medical pricing and malpractice lawsuits. Free enterprise is the only way our republic will survive and prosper and continue to be the leader in a free world.
Also stand fast on releasing water. Who cares about a fish -- there's plenty in the ocean. We need food production in the Valley: Jobs, healthy food, not imported. Happy people instead of stressed people. Valley residents don't want handouts, they want work.
It would also be nice to hear from Rep. Dennis Cardoza, instead of receiving a pass-the-buck bulk letter.
Modesto Bee
Well drillers warn of shutdowns...John Holland
http://www.modbee.com/local/v-print/story/862448.html
Water well drillers say they will have to idle some of their rigs if the state goes through with new limits on air emissions.
They are seeking a delay in rules set to take effect Jan. 1 for some of the diesel engines that power the rigs.
The drillers say buying new engines to comply with the rules would be expensive and the result could be fewer wells when California needs all the water it can get.
"If you have to park these rigs, you won't be able to drill wells with them," said Tom Weimer, president of Howk Systems, a Modesto irrigation and pump company.
He and other members of the California Groundwater Association are backing Assembly Bill 1416, which would delay the rules for five years.
The bill, introduced last month by Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani, D-Livingston, would apply to equipment used for drilling, reconstruction and maintenance of wells and pumps by the 960 licensed drillers in the state.
"Essentially, they need to keep working and drilling," said Robin Adam, district director for Galgiani.
This is especially vital in parts of the San Joaquin Valley that are getting federal money for new wells to deal with surface water cutbacks because of drought and fish protections, he said.
"It's not an exemption," he said. "It just extends the compliance date."
The Legislature is out of regular session for the rest of the year, but Adam said the California Air Resources Board might give drillers some relief by implementing the rules gradually in early 2010.
Adam said he was not aware of any opposition to the bill. A representative of the Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment, a leading advocate for air quality in the valley, did not return a call seeking comment.
Groundwater provides about a third of the state's water in average years and about half when drought shrinks the river supply, according to the bill.
Weimer said drillers are mostly small-business people who produce a relatively small amount of emissions while helping meet the need for water.
"Pollution is an important problem," he said. "Everybody needs to do their share, but it needs to be done carefully."
Drought aid OK'd for Stanislaus, neighboring counties...John Holland
http://www.modbee.com/local/v-print/story/863550.html
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has once again declared a drought disaster in Stanislaus and nearby counties.
The action, involving drought impacts since Jan. 1, allows affected farmers and ranchers to apply for low- interest loans and partial compensation for losses, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a letter last week to Gov. Schwarzenegger.
The declaration, announced Monday by Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced, is one in a series by the Department of Agriculture during the three-year drought.
Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Merced and Mariposa are among the 21 counties declared primary areas of drought impact. Tuolumne and Calaveras also qualified because they are next to the primary counties.
In Stanislaus County, 2009 drought losses as of May totaled about $29 million, said Milton O'Haire, assistant agricultural commissioner for the county. This includes nearly $9 million worth of rangeland, $5.2 million worth of cattle on the range, $4.2 million worth of alfalfa, $2.4 million worth of beans and $8.1 million worth of tomatoes.
The total is a tiny fraction of the more than $2 billion in gross farm income to the county in recent years, but the losses can hit hard at affected farms and ranches.
More information on the disaster aid is at Farm Service Agency offices:
— Stanislaus and Tuolumne counties: USDA Service Center, 3800 Cornucopia Way, Suite E, Modesto, 491-9320
— Merced and Mariposa counties: USDA Service Center, 2135 Wardrobe Ave., Suite C, Merced, 722-4119
—      San Joaquin and Calaveras counties: USDA Service Center, 3422 W. Hammer Lane, Suite C, Stockton, 472-7127
Fresno Bee
USDA disaster declaration offers Calif. drought relief...Robert Rodriguez
http://www.fresnobee.com/local/v-print/story/1646307.html
Relief is on the way for Valley farmers, but not to the level some had hoped.
Central San Joaquin Valley farmers suffering drought-related crop losses will be eligible for assistance after the U.S. Department of Agriculture declared 50 of California’s 58 counties natural disaster areas.
Included in the designation are Fresno, Kings, Madera and Tulare counties.
The declaration will clear the way for emergency loans to farmers who have suffered financial losses this year from the drought.
Farmers will be eligible depending on the severity of losses and their ability to repay.
Sarah Woolf, spokeswoman for the Westlands Water District, said that while every little bit helps, “this is not going to solve the problem” of ensuring a more stable water supply to farmers.
Woolf said farmers may be able to rely on crop insurance or disaster loans to stem their losses, but she called it a “Band-Aid approach.”
“It helps you limp along, but what about next year?” she said. “It does not deal with the broader problem.”
The USDA says 21 counties — including Kings — are part of the primary disaster area, and 29 more are designated because they are next to counties where widespread losses have occurred.
State and Fresno County officials were unsuccessful in getting President Barack Obama to declare a broader federal disaster declaration that would have brought in a wide range of help, including food, job training and unemployment assistance. The president denied the request in July.
The declaration comes as California farmers struggle with a third consecutive year of drought conditions.
Below-average rainfall, court decisions and environmental protections have led to a significant decrease in irrigation water to farmers in the Valley. Thousands of acres of farmland have been fallowed, and hundreds of workers are without jobs or are working less.
Last summer, the USDA designated Fresno County a natural disaster area because of losses caused by the drought.
Growers interested in receiving more information about disaster assistance can contact their local Farm Service Agency office.
Huge solar farms proposed in Valley...Tim Sheehan
http://www.fresnobee.com/local/v-print/story/1645817.html
A pair of solar farms proposed for the Panoche Hills of western Fresno County and eastern San Benito County could become the biggest installations of their kind in the world.
Solargen Energy Inc., based in Cupertino, has submitted an application to Fresno County planners for its Panoche Ranch Solar Farm on 2,600 acres of rangeland near the Little Panoche Reservoir. Solar photovoltaic panels spread across the acreage would produce up to 250 megawatts of electricity.
A few miles down Little Panoche Road, across the San Benito County line, Solargen has proposed an even larger project in the Panoche Valley, where solar panels could occupy as much as 10,000 acres and generate up to 1,000 megawatts of power.
If - and it's a big if - the projects are built, the 1,250 megawatts of electricity generated would dwarf the output of any other solar photovoltaic installation currently operating anywhere in the world. The largest such project now is a 266-acre spread of panels near Olmedilla de Alarcon, Spain, which produces 60 megawatts of electricity in peak daylight hours.
Solargen's plans are the latest - and largest - to emerge to harvest Central California's abundant sunlight to generate electricity without creating pollution.
But they're likely to face opposition from groups concerned about endangered species and Panoche Valley residents who don't want millions of solar panels dotting their scenic valley.
Ideal location?
Solargen CEO Michael Peterson said the sites are well-suited to large-scale solar production - even more so than the floor of the San Joaquin Valley, which can be blanketed in winter fog.
That means the solar potential of the two sites is about 90% of what it is in the scorching Mojave Desert, Peterson said.
Other factors are existing Pacific Gas & Electric Co. high-power transmission lines that cross overhead, offering a ready connection to the power grid; and the relative isolation of the two sites. "There's not a huge population and not a huge disturbance," Peterson said.
Documents submitted to Fresno County planners indicate that the smaller of the two projects would install more than 1.2 million solar panels. The 2-by-4-foot panels would be arranged in rows, tilted to face south, and held aloft about four to five feet off the ground by single-pole steel supports. The rows of panels would be spaced as much as 15 feet apart.
Underneath the panels, native plants and grasses would be grown, kept in check with seasonal grazing by sheep.
The entire property, which is uninhabited by humans and is used as grazing rangeland, covers more than 2,600 acres. About 1,000 acres would be used for the solar project. That includes a 16-acre substation that would tie the electricity into PG&E's transmission lines.
The rest of the land would be preserved as habitat for threatened and endangered species, including the San Joaquin kit fox, giant kangaroo rat and the blunt-nosed leopard lizard.
The larger project in San Benito County, if built out to its maximum, would install more than 3.5 million solar panels over about 10,000 acres. At that size, it would be able to produce 1,000 megawatts of power. But Peterson said it's more realistic to expect the installation to be smaller.
Even at half the maximum size, with an electrical output of about 500 megawatts, the San Benito County project would still be far larger than any other solar-panel operation today.
A matter of scale
As abundant as sunlight is, solar power remains a mere drop in central California's energy bucket. Most of the existing development of solar power is on the rooftops of businesses and homes. There are other projects being proposed in this part of the state, but the only one to get off the drawing board is a 5-megawatt, 40-acre solar farm now under construction in Mendota.
Electricity isn't the only benefit that Solargen hopes to bring to central California. Peterson said the company also hopes to build a manufacturing plant in Fresno County that could eventually employ up to 150 people making solar photovoltaic panels for its two large solar farms and other projects.
"It'll be less expensive for us to produce the panels as opposed to going out and buying them from an outside company," he said.
And cost is going to be an important consideration for Solargen. Peterson said he expects it will cost close to $4 billion to built both sites.
The company is in early negotiations to sell electricity to PG&E - an agreement that would provide a stable stream of revenue against which Solargen could borrow the money it needs for construction, the company said. It could take five to seven years to build the two farms, Peterson said.
Environmental concern
The price tag isn't going to be the only obstacle Solargen will have to overcome to build either of the two solar farms. Environmentalists are worried about the effects the projects will have on the animals and plants that call the two valleys home.
Brandon Hill, president of the Fresno Audubon Society, said his and other groups will be looking carefully at what Solargen plans to do to ease the effects. "We're going to try to approach this in a constructive manner," Hill said. "Hopefully they will listen to our concerns and respond where feasible."
The Fresno County site, just south of Little Panoche Reservoir, "is an important place to us" for bird watching, Hill said.
In San Benito County, however, outright opposition is brewing among Panoche Valley farmers who grow organic crops and grass-fed livestock sold at premium prices in the Bay Area.
Kim Williams, who with her husband Richard farms pasture-reared laying hens, fear Solargen's project will "cover the entire flat part of the valley with solar panels." That, she said, would ruin the area for the environmentally friendly farming and for the endangered animals and plants that live in the valley.
The solar farm would spoil efforts by the valley's residents - who number less than 200 - to promote the Panoche Valley as an area for ecotourism and agritourism, "a place to let people in the Bay Area see where their food is coming from," Williams said.
Williams said she's philosophically against companies that want to make a huge profit from cheap sunlight. "I'm opposed to utility-scale solar projects that take over prime land," she said. "Solar needs to be promoted on rooftops."
Audubon's Hill said he supports solar technology because it has fewer environmental consequences than fossil fuels.
"With really good mitigation, they can set aside a good chunk of land for wildlife for the rest of our lives," he said. "But with all the farmland that in theory should be retired on the west side of the [San Joaquin] Valley, why not put panels out there?"
Peterson said he's mindful of the environmental concerns.
"In order for us to become energy independent, we can't do it one rooftop at a time," he said.
"We won't be able to make everyone happy. That's just a given," Peterson added. "But we're doing our best to try to make this friendly to the environment."
In addition to setting aside nearby land for kit foxes, kangaroo rats and other species and steering clear of burrows or areas frequented by blunt-nosed leopard lizards, Solargen officials said, environmental engineers have recommended changes to fencing around the sites to allow critters to pass through, raising the panels off the ground to allow sheep to graze, continuing the traditional rangeland use of the property, and minimizing the number of solar panels to avoid disturbing sensitive areas.
"We're spending hundreds of thousands of dollars, if not millions, on environmental issues just to get to the starting line," McAfee said.
A pair of solar farms proposed in the Panoche Hills would produce up to 1.25 gigawatts of electricity...Google map
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=101659089870458701100.
00047328747a06a9ab73f&t=p&ll=36.70366,-120.866089&spn=0.770711,1.167297&z=9&source=embed
Solar "farms" proposed
A pair of solar "farms" in the Panoche Hills are proposed by Solargen Energy Inc. A 250-megawatt project near Little Panoche Reservoir in western Fresno County would spread more than 1.2 million solar photovoltaic panels over 1,000 acres. A similar, but larger, project in the Panoche Valley of eastern San Benito County would use more than 3.5 million solar photovoltaic panels over 10,000 acres to generate 1,000 megawatts of electricity
Stockton Record
Water, health at top of talks...Daniel Thigpen
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090922/A_NEWS/909220313#STS=fzwvvuy7.vdm
STOCKTON - For more than two hours Monday, dozens of residents peppered Rep. Jerry McNerney with questions in a quiet library conference room. They had a lot on their mind, chief among them health care reform but also water, war and wasteful government spending.
Certainly there were a few moments of spontaneous, spirited debate. But there were none of the shouting matches, protests or other variety of emotional outbursts that came to characterize the highly publicized town hall meetings other members of Congress endured during their summer recess.
On Monday, some of the estimated 100 people who attended the afternoon gathering at north Stockton's Margaret K. Troke Branch Library even thanked McNerney for his time.
Such public meetings with constituents are not new to McNerney, but before Monday, the Democrat from Pleasanton - one of San Joaquin County's two congressmen - had not held town hall-style events in the recent weeks the health care overhaul debate gained steam.
Instead, McNerney spent the summer meeting with targeted groups, attending "listening tours" of health facilities and opting for conference calls with residents in his district, earning criticism for avoiding the wide-ranging and sometimes raucous town halls that often generated national headlines.
Monday's event was far from a free-wheeling question and answer session, however. People were split into smaller groups that met with the congressman in shifts. Some had to wait more than an hour before they could participate.
People were asked to write their questions on a sheet of paper, and at the beginning of each session, McNerney took notes as participants read their comments aloud. When the last person finished, the congressman stood with his clipboard, methodically addressing most of the questions.
"I'm not going to be able to answer everything," he told one of his crowds. "I don't know everything."
He said he supported a government-funded, public health care option, one of the most controversial components of reform pushed by Democrats.
Although he said many Americans are happy with their health insurance, McNerney called a public option "an insurance plan that people can buy into" and "an important part of reform." But he did not say if his vote would hinge on a public option being included in a final plan.
McNerney said he wouldn't vote for any proposal that adds to the nation's deficit.
While some said the discussions were helpful, others left less satisfied, saying their questions weren't answered or that responses lacked specifics.
"He doesn't want to listen," said Peter Ohm, 66, of Stockton as he left the library. "He thinks he's going to push through government health care. ... He has a deaf ear, bottom line."
Monday's gathering was part of McNerney's ongoing Congress at Your Corner series, a meet-and-greet event held periodically in various locations throughout his sprawling district, which spans San Joaquin, Santa Clara, Alameda and Contra Costa counties.
The Stockton meeting was the 55th such event, said Sarah Hersh, McNerney's spokeswoman.
"We anticipated there would be a large turnout," she said. "We understood that there are numerous issues that are on people's minds."
State hopes for high speed rail funds
In application, transportation officials estimate section from Merced to Bakersfield would cost $1.3B...Zachary K. Johnson
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090922/A_NEWS/909220312#STS=fzwvvtz1.q9k
STOCKTON - As the deadline approaches to submit applications for $8 billion in federal stimulus funds available to build a high speed rail system, state officials released a tentative project list Monday asking for $4.6 billion.
The proposed application includes $1.29 billion to build a section of the spine of the proposed system through the San Joaquin Valley, from Merced to Bakersfield, and $22.5 million for environmental study of a connecting route along the Altamont corridor.
The California High Speed Rail Authority board is set to vote on the recommended list Wednesday. The application then goes to the governor before being submitted to compete with other states vying for a piece of money available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to create jobs while building rail infrastructure.
The projects are "the best candidates to compete in the national competition," said Mehdi Morshed, executive director of the rail authority.
Officials are banking on a nearly $10 billion bond passed by voters last year and years of planning to give California a leg up on other applicants.
The state high speed rail system connecting San Francisco to Anaheim could be completed by 2020, according to rail officials.
State and local funds would add another $1.29 billion toward the cost to build the Merced-to-Bakersfield stretch of the rail system, where the train would be able to reach speeds of 220 mph.
Transportation officials in the Valley are behind the plan, said Andrew Chesley, executive director of the San Joaquin Council of Governments.
"The sooner the high speed rail gets up and running, the better it is for all of us," he said.
The $22.5 million to study the Altamont corridor would be matched by local funds. The corridor is intended to connect to the high speed rail system, but the main spur is set to connect the Bay Area to the center of the state farther south, through the Pacheco Pass.
But Chesley said he believes the Altamont Pass leg would be completed first.
Last week, members of the Legislature went to Washington to lobby federal officials. Among them was Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani, D-Livingston, who has long advocated for high speed rail in the state. In addition to having money already committed to high speed rail, California has done more planning than other states, she said.
"We are very well positioned to put the federal stimulus dollars to work."
School a remedy for Valley doctor shortage...Joe Goldeen
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090922/A_NEWS/909220321#STS=fzwwby04.24u9
FRENCH CAMP - Making a routine appointment with a doctor takes longer in San Joaquin County than in the Bay Area, especially if it's with a specialist or to schedule elective surgery.
That's because the Valley has 31 percent fewer primary physicians and 51 percent fewer specialists than the rest of the state. Combine that with the fact that California will face a shortage of 17,000 physicians by 2015, according to figures provided by the Valley Coalition for UC Merced Medical School, and Valley access problems are only going to get worse.
A Valley-based medical school could be one of the keys to solving the chronic shortage.
Statistics show that a majority of physicians remain close to where they receive their medical training. Such a facility at the University of California's new Merced campus would also act as a magnet to entice some of the Valley's brightest students to enter the medical profession, according to the coalition.
The Valley Coalition hosted a Community Listening Tour stop last week in San Joaquin County to share its recommendations and to broaden its base, as well as to hear from health care professionals and residents who support the development of the medical school.
It is intended that the proposed school would use existing resources and facilities in the region to help train new doctors rather than build its own teaching hospital.
In May 2008, the UC Board of Regents endorsed continued planning, aiming for a 2020 target date for a fully independent medical school. The Valley Coalition subsequently voted to recommend that target date be moved up five years.
"2020 is too long to wait. We really need the program to be jump-started to 2015," said DeeDee D'Adamo, a Turlock attorney and senior policy adviser to Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Merced. D'Adamo is a member of the executive board of the Valley Coalition.
She noted that, considering the bare minimum of seven years it takes to train a qualified physician, the Valley simply can't wait that long.
Dr. Moses Elam, physician-in-chief for Kaiser Permanente's Central Valley Area, has hired many of the 420 doctors he supervises and spoke to the difficulty in attracting physicians to the region.
"Our communities do not seem to be high on the radar when we go out to recruit new physicians," Elam said, noting a study of northern San Joaquin Valley counties that shows $845 million in annual health care spending is lost to local economies because there are not enough physicians. "We need to reverse this. A medical school reverses the loss of these health care dollars," Elam said. "Physicians stay in the region where they complete their medical education."
D'Adamo said the Valley Coalition - which operates independently of UC Merced - has recommended that the school focus on improving the health of its neighbors, become a research-intensive institution and focus on regional issues such as asthma, diabetes and Valley fever.
"There is a lot of interest among existing health care providers to see if they can participate in the distributive model," in which medical students would train at existing hospitals and clinics throughout the Valley, D'Adamo said, with an emphasis on training culturally competent physicians sensitive to the needs of Valley
residents.
University of the Pacific health economist Peter Hilsenrath questioned why California needs another research-oriented medical school, instead pressing the need for training as many primary-care physicians as possible.
He said research schools are more interested in obtaining grant funding than in attracting tuition-paying medical students. "Research universities are taxpayer-funded. Is it possible in the UC system to have a different model?" Hilsenrath asked.
While no one in attendance was specifically qualified to answer Hilsenrath, UC Merced Vice Chancellor John Garamendi Jr. pointed out that the proposed medical school is already bucking convention by establishing a distributive education model and being the only one in the UC system not to have a hospital.
San Francisco Chronicle
Pollution lawsuit against power companies revived...AP
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/09/21/state/n125612D63.DTL&type=printable
PDT New York (AP) -- An appeals court has restored a lawsuit brought by eight states that want to hold power companies responsible for some of the nation's carbon dioxide emissions.
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan issued the ruling Monday.
Several years ago, a lower court judge had tossed out the lawsuit that would have brought judicial oversight to pollution issues that affect global warming.
The states bringing the lawsuit are California, Connecticut, Iowa, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin. New York City and three nonprofit land trusts also are part of the lawsuit.
The lawsuit seeks to force a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by several power companies. The companies have said the issue is best left up to the government.
Judge restores protections for grizzly bears...Matthew Brown, Associated Press
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/22/MNR019QCEH.DTL&type=printable
Billings, Mont. -- A federal judge in Montana restored protections Monday for an estimated 600 grizzly bears in and around Yellowstone National Park, citing in part a decline in their food supply caused by climate change.
After bouncing back from near-extermination last century, grizzlies were declared recovered in 2007, when they were stripped of their threatened status under the Endangered Species Act.
But in a 46-page ruling delivered Monday, U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy sided with environmental groups that argued the bruins remain at risk.
Among other factors, he cited a decline in whitebark pine trees - a key food source for many bears that has been disrupted by climate change, forest fires and other factors.
Government researchers have made similar links, but that research was downplayed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in its 2007 decision.
"There is a disconnect between the studies the agency relies on here and its conclusions," Molloy wrote in his ruling. "These studies still state that there is a connection between whitebark pine and grizzly survival."
The greater Yellowstone area of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming has the second-largest grizzly bear population in the lower 48 states. Four other populations with a combined estimated population of 900 animals have never lost their threatened status.
Grizzlies are omnivores, meaning they eat both plants and animals. In the Yellowstone area, the bears rely heavily on nuts from the cones of the whitebark pine, a high-elevation tree that has suffered a dramatic decline in recent years as warmer temperatures let pine-killing beetles flourish.
A Fish and Wildlife spokesman declined to comment directly on Molloy's ruling, saying agency staff needed to review it.
"We're going to take some time with this rule because it's so significant," spokesman Matt Kales said. "This is obviously a pretty big policy matter for us. Our first and foremost concern remains with the status of the bear."
Environmentalists welcomed the ruling and said it underscored the need for government agencies to pay more heed to the potential damage climate change can cause for at-risk animal and plant species.
"The decline of the whitebark pine is one more wake-up call that we urgently need to address the cause of many species' impending extinctions," said Michael Robinson with the Center for Biological Diversity, a plaintiff in a separate federal lawsuit over grizzlies in Idaho that remains pending.
In his ruling, Molloy also said state and federal conservation plans meant to protect Yellowstone-area grizzlies into the future were inadequate.
Obama decision protects NW salmon...Steve Wright. Steve Wright is the administrator of the Bonneville Power Administration.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/22/EDOR19QC3F.DTL&type=printable
We're seeing encouraging signs for Northwest salmon this year. More than 700 Snake River sockeye have returned to Idaho - the most since we began counting in the 1950s and up from just one in 1992. Snake River fall chinook are expected back in numbers not seen for decades.
This is a more promising picture of federally protected salmon in the Northwest's Columbia and Snake rivers than Chronicle readers got in an Aug. 16 editorial calling for breaching hydroelectric dams to save these salmon. The true picture is one of regional collaboration that has helped put these fish on the path to a better future.
The Obama administration last week supported that commitment by strengthening a 2008 blueprint - called a biological opinion - for operating hydroelectric dams without jeopardizing Columbia River salmon. It includes clear standards to ensure more fish pass safely through the dams.
Following intense scientific review, the administration added a plan full of contingency measures as precautions against uncertainties such as climate change.
This is important for the whole West Coast, where fishing fleets share salmon runs from different rivers. Northwest dams have also been a major contributor to California's own energy portfolio, and, in times such as during the West Coast energy crisis, have literally helped the state keep its lights on.
The administration added specific measures to quickly respond to unexpected salmon declines, including further examination of breaching dams, but only as an option of last resort.
The strengthened biological opinion evolved in the Pacific Northwest. It's historic not just because of how far it goes for salmon, but because states and tribes that fought earlier biological opinions helped develop this one - and stand behind it. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire wrote earlier this year, "The federal government's commitment to continued collaboration and partnership during the BiOp's implementation is a sea change for the region."
Good ocean conditions deserve plenty of credit for this year's surging runs. The assist from the ocean was backed up by hundreds of actions funded by electric ratepayers throughout the region to repair damaged spawning habitat, aid fish survival through hydroelectric dams and fine-tune harvests so fish have the best chance to rebuild their numbers.
The biological opinion recognizes that the challenge of climate change raises the stakes both for salmon and for us. Four dams on the Lower Snake River, which some want breached, generate two coal plants' worth of power without a puff of greenhouse gas. Hundreds of megawatts of this clean power flow south to help California meet its aggressive climate goals.
Saving salmon requires a plan based on sound science, with the commitment and political will to implement it. The Pacific Northwest is fortunate to have both, and the results benefit California as well.
Inside Bay Area
State to apply for $1.28 billion for high-speed rail, Caltrain construction from SF to San Jose...Mike Rosenberg, San Mateo County Times
http://www.insidebayarea.com/news/ci_13388836
SACRAMENTO — State officials said Monday that they will apply for $1.28 billion in prized federal stimulus funding for projects that would expand Caltrain commuter service and allow statewide high-speed trains to zip between San Francisco and San Jose.
The state would match the federal grants with its own money, likely from voter-approved Proposition 1A, which can only be tapped to match other funds, bringing the total cash at stake to a whopping $2.56 billion.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority Board is expected to approve the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act application Wednesday. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger would then submit the request to the Federal Railroad Administration before the federal government's Oct. 2 deadline.
The stimulus plan includes $8 billion for high-speed intercity passenger rail service, and the authority is requesting more than half, $4.6 billion, for design and construction costs for four of its 10 corridors between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The application includes joint projects for the Caltrain line, which high-speed rail will share from San Francisco to San Jose.
"When we first started planning this project, nobody had ever dreamed there would be an $8 billion pot of money in a stimulus act," said Jeff Barker, the authority's deputy director. "So to some degree, this opportunity is a gift."
But as funding sources dry up, the state and Caltrain are pinning a great deal of their funding hopes on the federal program. Without stimulus and Prop. 1A money, Caltrain, for one, has no way to fund its electrification plans for at least a year.
In composing its application, the authority split the cost of each project in half, saying the state would come up with the other 50 percent.
At the top of the list is funding for grade separations, the rail bridges that allow cars to pass underneath the Caltrain tracks and for safety reasons are required for bullet trains. The authority is seeking $494.5 million for grade separations along the Caltrain line, including $150 million for rail bridges in San Bruno.
The state is also asking for $442.5 million to electrify the Caltrain corridor. Electrification is necessary for the diesel locomotive rail line to be compatible with high-speed trains, and it will allow Caltrain to expand its commuter service and save operating costs.
The application also includes a $115.5 million request to install a positive train control safety system along the Caltrain corridor. The federal government in October mandated that the technology, which helps prevent train-to-train collisions and over-speed derailments, be used nationwide by 2015.
Finally, the authority will solicit $227.5 million for improvements at three stations: Diridon in San Jose ($75 million), Transbay Terminal in San Francisco ($102.5 million), and Fourth and King in San Francisco ($50 million).
In addition to the construction projects, the stimulus application consists of an additional $276.5 million for preliminary engineering, including $30.5 million for the San Francisco-to-San Jose segment.
Executive Director Mehdi Morshed said federal officials should award the funds in three to four months. Authority leaders like their chances, as California was one of the few, if any, states actively planning for high-speed rail before the stimulus funds became available.
"California is leaps and bounds ahead of anybody else in planning this," Barker said.
Even if the state is awarded the funds, it would lose the money if it is unable to begin construction by the federal deadline of September 2012. The authority would also have to approve the environmental planning for any stimulus-funded projects by September 2011 and complete construction by September 2017.
Barker said officials only chose projects they were confident would meet those deadlines.
A Sacramento judge is expected to issue a disposition Oct. 9 that may require the authority to redo some of its completed environmental work, which officials said would surely prevent the state from meeting the stimulus deadlines. The disposition stems from a lawsuit that Menlo Park, Atherton and environmental groups filed against the state last year.
High-speed rail stimulus application for San Francisco-to-San Jose segment
Project Stimulus request Total project cost
San Bruno grade separations $150 million $300 million
Other grade separations $344.5 million $689 million
Corridor electrification $442.5 million $885 million
Positive train control $115.5 million $231 million
Transbay Terminal platform extensions $102.5 million $205 million
Didiron station improvements $75 million $150 million
Fourth and King station improvements $50 million $100 million
Total $1.28 billion $2.56 billion
*Source: California High-Speed Rail Authority
Interactive Rail Map...Fresno to Los Angeles
http://www.mercurynews.com/california-high-speed-rail-map
The map below shows the proposed route of the California High Speed Rail, as created by the California High Speed Rail Authority...
Los Angeles Times
L.A. may drop plans for controversial transmission line
The DWP's proposed 85-mile-long Green Path North line through unspoiled desert and wildlife preserves was opposed by community and environmental groups. The agency may focus on other routes...Phil Willon
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-green-path22-2009sep22,0,6291675,print.story
Los Angeles officials said the city may abandon plans to build a highly controversial "green" power transmission line through unspoiled desert and wildlife preserves on a route east of the San Bernardino Mountains, focusing instead on alternative pathways mostly along an interstate highway where high-voltage lines already exist.
The Department of Water and Power's proposed 85-mile-long Green Path North transmission line has faced fierce opposition from more than a dozen community and environmental groups, creating a political chink in Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's efforts to cast himself as the leader of the "cleanest, greenest big city in America."
The proposed transmission line, which is about to undergo federal and state environmental review, is designed to bring electricity generated by solar, geothermal, wind and nuclear power to Los Angeles from the southeastern California deserts and Arizona. Villaraigosa in July promised to end the city's reliance on high-polluting, coal-fired power plants and secure 40% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.
At the very least, the city utility may shelve the agency's most controversial proposed route for the power corridor, which would cut through Big Morongo Wildlife Preserve north of Palm Springs, Pioneertown near Yucca Valley, Pipes Canyon Wilderness Preserve and a corner of the San Bernardino National Forest before connecting with existing DWP power lines in Hesperia.
"We've heard the concerns of the community and so we're seriously contemplating taking that off the table," DWP General Manager H. David Nahai said recently.
The Green Path North transmission line could be halted altogether -- or postponed -- because of opposition from environmental groups, concerns raised by U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and the enormous costs, according to City Hall sources familiar with the project. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the proposal.
The Villaraigosa administration appears to have shifted to a policy focused more on developing renewable energy sources closer to the DWP's existing power transmission lines, primarily those that stretch to Owens Valley and east toward Utah.
"We're constantly reviewing and evaluating all of our options," Nahai said.
Environmental groups and community activists were encouraged by Nahai's comments, but remain wary until the proposed transmission line through Yucca Valley is officially scuttled.
"I think that would be really good news if that were the case," said April Sall, conservation director with the Wildlands Conservancy in Oak Glen. "The Yucca Valley route would have really high environmental damage.
"If the DWP wants to validate its claims that they want a more environmental friendly face for L.A. and the DWP, this would be a step in the right direction."
Controversy over the transmission line erupted in December 2006 when the DWP identified the Yucca Valley route as its "preferred alternative," but the agency has since backed away from that statement, saying that there are seven viable routes.
The cost of building Green Path North could exceed a half-billion dollars, according to DWP estimates in 2006.
Nahai said he still firmly believes that the DWP will need new transmission capability to carry power from the Salton Sea and Imperial County, home to vast geothermal power reserves and prime terrain for solar power generation.
The DWP, the nation's largest municipal utility, already has plans for a 55-megawatt "solar farm" on 970 acres it owns near Niland, and the utility also has purchased more than 5,800 acres near the Salton Sea as possible sites for geothermal power plants.
The agency hopes to share a transmission pathway with Southern California Edison Co., which has existing transmission lines along Interstate 10, for most of the route to Los Angeles, Nahai said.
"Our preference would be, to the extent that we have transmission coming out of the Salton Sea, that that be done on a shared basis," he said.
For Green Path North, the first step in the environmental review process is expected to begin within a matter of months, during which a series of public hearings will be held throughout Southern California.
The process is being coordinated by the DWP, federal Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service, since the proposed routes traverse federally protected lands.
The DWP hopes to finish construction of Green Path North by 2014.