East County Community Action Coalition

06232010 Alpine Sunrise Powerlink Mtg from Donna Tisdale on Vimeo.

06232010 Alpine Sunrise Powerlink Mtg Part 2 public comments from Donna Tisdale on Vimeo.

06232010 Alpine Sunrise Powerlink Mtg Part 3 public comments from Donna Tisdale on Vimeo.

Editor General

On Tuesday, February 15, 2010, a federal lawsuit to halt the Sunrise Powerlink was officially filed today by the groups The Protect Our Communities Foundation, East County Community Action Coalition, and Back Country Against Dumps. Celebratory crys can be heard echoing across the east county, as the united citizens of Lakeside, Alpine, Campo and Boulevard, and our friends across the county and the country, say NO to SDG&E’s distortions and destruction, and YES to true green energy. Thank you to all the donors and volunteers who have given our communities a voice. And yes, we officially and legally now have that voice! The filing will be posted on the POC website by 5 pm today.  Visit www.protectourcommunities.org

Editor General

Here is the April 6, 2009 Town Hall Meeting, which was filmed by Citizens Oversight Project.  Thank you Raymond Lutz!

Editor General

ECCAC and 2 other local organizations file appeal against the BLM approval

March 24, 2009 – Lakeside, CA -An appeal to the U.S. Department of the Interior over its Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approval of San Diego Gas & Electric’s Sunrise Powerlink transmission project was filed Monday by three local organizations in San Diego County.  The appeal notice to the Interior Board of Land Appeals is the first step to a court appeal.

It shows that the BLM failed to adequately conduct required environmental reviews before approving the project, and therefore BLM’s decision to approve the project should be reviewed. The BLM’s Record of Decision on January 20, 2009 approved the controversial 150-mile transmission line that, according to the project’s own environmental impact report, will significantly increase the likelihood of catastrophic fires.

Appellants Backcountry Against the Dump, Inc., a grassroots organization located in Boulevard, CA, The Protect Our Communities Foundation (POC) based in Santa Ysabel, and the East County Community Action Coalition (ECCAC), based in Lakeside, also requested a stay of action by the BLM on construction of the power line project until the appeal has been resolved.  Stephan C. Volker of the Volker Law Offices of Oakland, CA filed the appeal and stay.

“We are asking the federal government to do what they should have done to begin with,” said backcountry activist and BAD principal Donna Tisdale of Boulevard, who is also named in the appeal notice.  “The BLM violated so many laws in this rush to approve SDG&E’s project it makes your head spin,” she said.  The appeal states that the National Environmental Policy Act, Federal Land Policy Management Act, Endangered Species Act, National Historic Preservation Act and the Administrative Procedures Act were all ignored by the BLM in their decision-making process on the giant transmission project.

The power line, approved by the California Public Utilities Commission last December, against the advice of the Assigned Administrative Law Judge and the Commission’s environmental report, will cost California ratepayers at least $1.9 billion.  SDG&E refused to agree to formally condition the line for renewables in the CPUC proceedings, Tisdale said, pointing out that the company actually stated that they would jettison the project if the state forced the issue.

If you would like an emailed copy of the appeal and motion to stay, please email info@eastcountyaction.org.

Editor General

Editor General

ECCAC in the news

See ECCAC in the news in this week’s article by the Alpine Sun, “Residents and Protesters show at Sunrise Open House”.

http://www.thealpinesun.com/March%2019/as%20inside.html

Editor General ECCAC, powerlink, Protest

As recent as January 2009 the nesting pair of Golden Eagles was confirmed along the route of the Sunrise Powerlink…. see

http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/cleveland/projects/projects/seasonal-closures/

Editor Fire, General

I am saddened to find myself in a country where it is considered “low impact” to rob a community of its open spaces, scenic corridors, healthy homes, fire safety, and then …… on top of that…. knowingly cause the mortality of a dwindling species… Golden Eagles.  I think “low impact” only considers the corporate profit, and not the public interest.  The following is taken directly from the final EIR.  See link for the full document. See page 131 of on this link http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/environment/info/aspen/sunrise/feir/D02%20Biology.pdf

The golden eagle is very sensitive to human activity, especially in the vicinity of its nesting area(s), and even distant construction activity (or maintenance activity; see Section D.2.16, Impact B-12) could cause abandonment of a nest, subsequent reproductive failure, and continuing decline of the species. These impacts would be significant according to Significance Criteria 1.e., 1.f., 1.g, and 1.h. Significance Criterion 1.e. states that the Proposed Project would have a substantial adverse effect on the breeding success of the golden eagle. Significance Criterion 1.f. states that the Proposed Project would directly or indirectly cause the mortality of a special status species. Significance Criterion 1.g. states that the Proposed Project would result in the abandonment of migratory bird nests and/or eggs. Significance Criterion 1.h. states that the Proposed Project would take golden eagles, eagle eggs, or any part of an eagle. Human activity within 4,000 feet of nest site is considered significant and not mitigable to less than significant levels (Class I)

All it takes for evil to pervail is for good men and women to stand by and do nothing. TAKE ACTION TODAY.

Editor Golden Eagles, Powerlink, What is at Stake, powerlink

http://www.anzaborrego.net/Travel/AnzaBorrego/post/Sunrise-Powerlink-SDGE-Town-Hall-Meeting-in-Alpine.aspx

Editor Action

The Union Tribune published an article on March 7, 2009 that San Diego Gas & Electric Co. agreed on March 6, 2009 to pay up to $1.1 million to settle accusations that it tried to mislead state regulators about the proposed route for the Sunrise Powerlink.

The company didn’t admit lying to regulators, but apologized for what it said was a mistake: failing to include two documents in a public filing describing a presentation to staff members at the state Public Utilities Commission.

Folks, the “missing” documents were about the route alternatives that include the route through OUR VALLEY.

You can see the article in signonsandiego.com or cut and paste this link:  http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/mar/07/1b7sdge215517-sdgampe-set-pay-after-misstating-sun/

Editor Press El Monte Valley & El Cap, SDG&E, Sempra, unethical