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Liberty Hires Liaison to Promote Sludge Plant |
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Written by truth
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Tuesday, 06 February 2007 |
By BRIANNA LUSK
Staff Writer
Liberty Energy has hired its first full-time permanent position associated with the proposed sludge-to-energy plant near Niland. Luis Plancarte, an Imperial Valley native and El Centro resident will start working for the Bakersfieldbased company Feb. 19, providing community outreach services. With the environmental impact report tied to the project still months in the making, Plancarte will serve as a liaison to address community concerns.
“He will be responsible as the local spokesman for Liberty Energy,” Liberty Chief Executive Officer Wilson Nolan said. “He will be somebody much more accessible than I have been.”
But Plancarte said he is not campaigning for the plant and his job is not to sway public opinion.
“It’s about providing true and accurate information and backing up all the information I provide,” Plancarte said.
He views his new position as an educator, Plancarte said, and will work with decision makers and residents to take down the barriers that have been built up by misinformation.
Nolan said the complexity of the plant brings about a lot of questions that don’t have easy answers. The ability to sit down and discuss the issues, he said, could be crucial to the plant’s success. “We’re walking the walk. We said we would listen and this is our way of listening,” Nolan said.“(The plant) involves controversy, emotions and science. It takes time and effort to be able to separate myth from fact.”
Plancarte said after he learns more about the technical aspects of the plant, he intends to put together more workshops and bilingual materials to explain the technology.
Soon, offices in El Centro and Calipatria will be up and running, he said, and he will be the first point of contact for public concern.
If the project comes to fruition and completes the permitting process, Plancarte will continue to work for Liberty to maintain an open line of communication.
Plancarte, 44, will be leaving his position with the Workforce Investment Board of Imperial County, where he is a business services analyst and has more than 20 years in business management experience.
With his family’s support, Plancarte said he knows he’s facing a challenging task in his new role with Liberty, but he is confident as the EIR is generated, the plant will continue on the path to being built.
And the immersion and visibility of Plancarte in the community, Nolan said, is ultimately Liberty’s answer to the question of whether they really have the Imperial Valley’s interest at heart.
“We need someone here all the time to carry out our commitment to the community,” Nolan said
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