By: Laura Copic - Commentary in the North County Times 9/17/06 I attended the California Public Utilities Commission's pre-hearing conference in Ramona for SDG&E's Sunrise Powerlink and waited four hours to speak for a limited one minute on behalf of the Carmel Valley Community Planning Board and the 35,000 residents it represents in opposition to SDG&E's antiquated and unenlightened approach to solving our future power needs. In all fairness to the CPUC commissioners, this was because there were so many people who wanted to speak out and, thankfully, Supervisor Diane Jacob took the time to express the informed concerns of many of us.
Our reasons for opposing the Sunrise Powerlink are twofold. First, this "transmission first" strategy appears to be in contradiction to the Energy Action Plan and the San Diego Regional Energy Strategy 2030, which stress energy efficiency, reducing demand, producing power in-county and renewables before transmission as preferred strategies to attaining our future energy needs. Second, this transmission line would be a visible, audible blight upon our state park and local preserves as well as a fire and health hazard to nearby residents.
