Sonoma County supervisors are considering claiming all the waters off their coast so that their county residents, not big companies, can direct wave energy development.
Supervisors were set to vote Tuesday on a plan to direct staff of the Sonoma County Water Agency to file an application with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a preliminary permit to test wave energy devices. That was the same action taken two years ago by Douglas County, Oregon, an action which has been challenged by FERC.
This would be a more aggressive action than that taken last month by Mendocino County, which asked for status to intervene and protest in the Pacific Gas and Electric project off Fort Bragg. It is unclear if the county can legally do this in California, as several state and federal agencies have yet to clarify their positions on the regulatory process for wave energy.
On Monday, the federal Minerals Management Service announced its process for helping promote wind, wave and even ocean current energy. That agency controls waters more than three miles offshore.
The Ocean Protection Commission (OPC), the state agency responsible for ocean policy, held its initial hearing on wave energy last week in Eureka. The issue may be on the OPC”s February agenda.
“We are, unfortunately, faced with a lawless land rush situation in our offshore waters right now,” said Richard Charter with Defenders of Wildlife. “Either we wait for Chevron or a utility giant to take control of the Sonoma Coast, as has recently been happening in Mendocino and Humboldt counties, or our own Board of Supervisors acts proactively to assert local control.”
The reason the Sonoma Coast hasn”t already attracted wave energy proposals, surprisingly, is that the area is too remote. It is the city of Fort Bragg as a municipal service provider, especially its PG&E substation, that attracted both Chevron and PG&E to make filings off Fort Bragg and Mendocino. Several filings off Eureka have had similar motivations.
Power could be generated just offshore and plugged into the grid in both Eureka and Fort Bragg.
Although Sonoma County is closer to the big city, its coast lacks the city services and electrical grid, representatives of the two companies have said.
Chevron has since withdrawn its Mendocino County wave energy application.
“I will be looking for assurance that our actions work toward protection of our marine resources and that we don”t cede local control of our coastline to business interests or federal regulators in far-away places,” said Mike Reilly, Sonoma County supervisor and former chair of the Coastal Commission, in a county press release.
The preliminary permit area sought by the county encompasses the entire Sonoma Coast out to 12 miles offshore, a county press release states. The application contemplates development of hydrokinetic energy demonstration projects capable of generating from 2 to 5 megawatts of power.
In order to gain a FERC permit, an applicant must intend to develop or study wave energy.
“We don”t know at this time if the project will prove to be feasible,” said Sonoma County Supervisor Tim Smith in the press release. “But we do know that if we don”t pursue this, someone else will. We have to take a serious look at this proposal,”
Currently the Sonoma County Water Agency holds 2 megawatts of solar photovoltaic power supply and has access to 6 megawatts of landfill biogas power. The agency”s peak power demand is about 12 megawatts.
The agency is the primary water supplier for 600,000 residents of Sonoma and Marin counties.
Advocates for marine sanctuaries and for local commercial fishing organizations have been closely following plans to develop wave energy projects in Northern California.
“We”re intrigued by wave energy generation as green” replacement power to enable removal of antiquated, fish-killing hydro dams,” commented Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen”s Associations. “But these offshore facilities must be carefully placed so as not to obstruct fishing, shipping and recreation. That”s why it”s so important for local government take the lead and not leave wave energy development to the whims of power companies.”
If approved by the board this week or at a future meeting, Sonoma County Water Agency staff would submit an application to FERC for a preliminary permit that would allow the agency to begin feasibility studies of wave energy projects for the Sonoma Coast. Staff estimates that about $1.75 million in grants and agency money will be required to fund these studies and would return to the board at a future date for approval of a financial plan, the press release said.
