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Lawsuits blame SDG&E lines for recent fires
By Christy Scott
The Alpine Sun
Two lawsuits filed recently against San
Diego Gas and Electric, blaming the utility for the Rice Canyon
and Witch fires, could add more fuel to arguments against the
proposed Sunrise Powerlink project, which could traverse large
portions of the county’s most fire-prone areas.
The suits, filed by burned-out homeowners, accuse the
company of negligence and poor maintenance of wires and
landscaping, claiming power lines ignited the blazes. This claim
was recently verified by Cal Fire investigators. The plaintiffs
want a jury to decide whether SDG&E should pay.
The suit is a class-action suit so others might join,
and no monetary amount has been stated as of yet.
SDG&E representatives have states that, “No electric
system can be completely protected from such severe weather."
This statement leads many Sunrise Powerlink opponents
to wonder why the utility would build another large transmission
line in the county’s flammable Back Country, especially along a
possible Modified Alternative D route that skirts the border,
and was again hit by fire. This alternative follows, for the
most part, already in place.
The Harris Fire, which ignited early Sunday, Oct. 21,
quickly halted the flow of electricity from the Southwest
Powerlink, which travels along the border route, and has been
disabled by fire 24 times in the past decade. SDG&E officials
turned off the 1,000 megawatt line to eliminate danger of
electrocution should the wires come down in the flames the
burned in the area. The same day, a malfunction caused the
shutdown of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, the
county’s other major transmission line.
The Southwest Powerlink returned to service Wednesday
afternoon moments after the last lines to San Onofre tripped,
which kept SDG&E from possibly having to shut off power to
customers.
On Thursday, the utility said it kept the power flowing
to most customers throughout the fires in part due to the
continued conservation efforts of all customers, electricity
from Mexico and a decision by the U.S. Navy to shift the power
supply needs of its ships from the grid to onboard generators.
Because of its location, and because SDG&E has chosen
to rely heavily on imported electricity, San Diego County
typically imports about half the power it uses along these two
major lines. With these lines disabled the county is forced to
look at the local sources of generation, which cannot sustain
the needs of the 1.4 million customers.
There are only three large power plants operating
within the county: the Encina Power Plant in Carlsbad, owned by
NRG Energy; the South Bay Power Plant in Chula Vista, operated
by Dynegy; and the Palomar Energy Center in Escondido, owned by
SDG&E.
SDG&E has contended that this is a major reason that
another transmission line is needed to bring energy into the
county. Many opponents, however, have argued that the utility
needs to concentrate on local sources of power, rather than
importing.
The utility’s preferred route for the Sunrise Powerlink
would run through Anza Borrego Desert State Park. The 150-mile,
$1.3 billion, 500 kilovolt powerline would start in the Imperial
Valley, where wind and solar energy are expected to be
developed; cut through the middle of Anza Borrego; and end at a
substation near Del Mar. This route would cut right through the
heart of the area that burned during the 198,000-acre Witch
Creek Fire.
The California Public Utilities Commission, however,
directed SDG&E to come up with alternative routes that would not
go through the park. After several iterations, the preferred
alternative route became Modified Route D.
Modified route D would plant 125-foot tall conduit
towers along a path that would skirt Cleveland National Forest;
but travel right through Boulevard, Campo, Potrero, north
through Descanso and west through the heart of Alpine, where it
would be undergrounded along Alpine Boulevard from West Willows
to Peutz Valley Road.
The Sunrise Powerlink Environmental Impact report is
due to be released early in the New Year. The document could
total up to 7,000 pages once complete. A group of residents in
the Back Country have formed a group to review the EIR once it’s
released, and are looking for volunteers to help them sift
through the thousands of pages in a timely manner, so that they
can give comment in the short time allotted after its release.
For more information about how you can take part please contact
Bev Esry at
bevesry@hughes.net.
For more information about the Sunrise Powerlink
Modified Route D check online
HERE.
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