Imperial Valley shouldn’t be a sacrificial zone for the ‘clean energy revolution’
We know that California and the rest of the country are counting on the Imperial Valley and its lithium resources to meet their goals of electrifying the transportation sector, however, our region cannot be a sacrifice zone for the clean energy revolution.
This week, the Imperial County Planning Commission voted to approve a geothermal and lithium development project called “Hell’s Kitchen.” It will soon go before the Imperial County Board of Supervisors for final approval. Unfortunately, the final environmental impact report developed by Controlled Thermal Resources fails to adequately respond to concerns from the community and government. CTR is a private company from Australia currently spearheading a number of lithium projects in the Imperial Valley.
In the past, the Imperial County Board of Supervisors has rescinded project approvals previously approved by the County in response to challenges on the adequacy of the environmental review and compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act. For example, in 2020, Imperial County’s Environmental Evaluation Committee, Planning Commission and BOS approved an approximate 17,000-head expansion of an existing 17,000-head, 80-acre cattle feedlot relying on a Mitigated Negative Declaration—over the objections, of expert evidence, indicating the MND failed to properly analyze the air quality, odor and greenhouse gas impacts. After a lawsuit was filed alleging CEQA violations, the Imperial County supervisors rescinded the feedlot approvals in March 2021.
When a developer proposes to build a geothermal and lithium development project in Imperial County, residents should expect the highest standards of environmental health protections.
From an environmental justice perspective, the project area is designated as a “Disadvantaged Community” by the CALENVIROSCREEN 4.0, a state public health screening method used to identify California communities affected by multiple pollution sources, and is already carrying a disproportionate level of pollution burden compared to the rest of the state.
Comite Civico del Valle is a community-based organization established in 1987 to serve farmworkers and their families in the Imperial Valley that now works in the environmental and social justice issues to address problems impacting the Imperial Valley and Salton Sea region.
In our public comments, Comite Civico del Valle noted CTR's proposed Hell’s Kitchen project will bring upwards of 4,000 new truck trips to the region, which means more air pollution, dust, as well as traffic and noise issues. Not to mention the unknown health impacts of extracting and processing lithium, possible soil and water contamination issues, and the potential for increased seismic activity.
The Imperial County Air Pollution Control District has flagged inconsistencies with CTR’s air quality modeling results due to the value changes listed for hours of equipment use, as well as dust and air pollution from hauling, vendor and worker trips. It is important that the public have a full understanding of the air quality impacts so that appropriate measures can be developed that will protect the lungs of our most vulnerable residents.
In light of CTR’s efforts to position themselves as the technology with the most environmental integrity amongst its competitors, I am disappointed that CTR is repeating tendencies of past development failures. I am also troubled by the lack of response to unanswered questions raised by state and local authorities.
The California State Lands Commission points out that CTR has plans for directional drilling that are not included in the project area and that the subsurface locations of this drilling need to be disclosed. The Imperial Irrigation District points out unresolved transmission issues that reveal misunderstandings of the interconnections with our local electricity grid, while also asserting that CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen projects could result in a reduction of water flow to the Salton Sea. Such a reduction of water may accelerate the degradation of the Salton Sea and exacerbate what is already an ecological and public health disaster.
The Imperial Valley has a proud tradition of growing the food that feeds America and contributing to the economic growth of the Golden State. But that tradition has already come at a cost to the local health and natural environment. People and residents should continue to stay engaged and work to ensure that CTR’s Hell’s Kitchen projects offer the highest standards for the health and safety of our community. We hope that CTR agrees and will do the same.
Luis Olmedo is Executive Director of Comite Civico del Valle based in Brawley, California. Luis can be reached at luis@ccvhealth.org
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Imperial Valley shouldn’t be a sacrificial zone for the ‘clean energy revolution’
