Residents ban importation of sewer sludge into Imperial County. For more information: Rosie Nava-Bermudez,
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Opponents of a proposed $95 million sludge-burning power plant for Imperial County said they have gathered more than enough signatures to put the issue before voters in November.
That news marks another turning point in the political battle over Liberty Energy Resources Inc.’s ambitious plans to build a state-of-the-art plant roughly four miles north of Niland, a small farming community in the northern portion of the county.
Opponents say the plant will emit toxins into the environment and will pave the way for making Imperial County a virtual dumping ground for other waste-related industries.
The Bakersfield-based energy company says its proposed facility will bring jobs, add electric capacity here and will operate well within California air-quality standards.
Residents for Health and Safety First, the grassroots group opposing the proposed plant, said on Wednesday its has gathered about 4,000 signatures — more than two times the 1,500 needed to put the matter on the ballot. Rosie Nava, the group’s president, said she will deliver those petitions to the Imperial County Board of Supervisors in May, well ahead of the county’s July 22 deadline.
“We want to make sure there’s plenty of time to check every signature,” Nava said.
Her announcement came one day before the county Planning Department is slated to hold a public hearing over the environmental impact assessment being conducted. The hearing is to allow the public an opportunity to voice its concerns and questions over the assessment.
“If we had any reason to think that we couldn’t meet air-emissions standards, we wouldn’t be doing this,” Luis A. Plancarte, a Liberty Energy Resources representative, said.
His comments came during a presentation on Wednesday to the Brawley Rotary Club.
Imperial County transports a portion of its sludge, mainly manure, to Yuma County, where it is dispersed on farm lands.
Los Angeles and San Diego counties transport their sludge to Arizona as well, sending sludge-carrying trucks through Imperial County on a daily basis.
Plancarte said Imperial County gains no economic benefit from sludge that is transported through the county.
He said a sludge-burning plant here would add 132 jobs, paying on the average $42,000 a year. Most of those jobs, 99, would be truck drivers, he said.
