Environment

Stop Industrial Expansion On Our Lagoon

by The Editors on November 30, 2011

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The California Energy Commission is giving several of Carlsbad residents concerns regarding the expansion of the NRG Power Station another look and you can help make the difference.

An Evidentiary Hearing will be held in Carlsbad on Monday, December 12, 2011 to hear additional testimony on six topics. Of primary concern to local residents is discussion of whether the new proposed power plant violates Carlsbad land use rules and NRG’s reneging on their agreement to tear down the aging Encina Power Station.

The hearing begins at 8:30 AM and public comment starts at 5:30 PM December 12, 2011 at the Hilton Garden Inn located at 6450 Carlsbad Blvd. Follow the jump for more details.

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Aptera Refunding Buyer Deposits

by The Editors on August 24, 2011

Aptera-2E-Aa-300X191Carlsbadistan’s electric car start-up Aptera is apparently experiencing some difficult times and is now reportedly in the process of refunding all customer deposits taken for it’s high-mileage small car, according to a post on Triple Pundit.

Unfortunately, the company has experienced numerous setbacks, and the production dates have repeatedly been pushed back. Although originally scheduled to be delivered in late 2008, production deadlines have been missed and moved back as design changes continued to mount and funds dwindled. In 2010, Aptera was denied $184 million, in U.S. Department of Energy loans. The company re-applied for the DOE loans under a revised bill, but those monies have yet to be awarded.

Looks like another bummer for one of Carlsbadistan’s once brightest start-ups. Click here for a complete listing of our past coverage of Aptera.

[Link: Triple Pundit]

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4th Annual Carlsbad Beach Fest June 4

by The Editors on June 1, 2011

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This Saturday, June 4, 2011 from 8 AM to 3 PM we’ll be joining the City of Carlsbad Beach Preservation Committee. California State Parks, the Friends of Cardiff & Carlsbad State Beaches, and the Carlsbad Village Athletic Club for the 4th Annual Carlsbad Beach Fest at Frazee State Beach at Pine Ave. You probably should, too.

“The goal of the event is to highlight our coastal playground as an irreplaceable resource, and to show appreciation for its beauty and value,” said Tammy Urie, special events director for the Carlsbad Village Athletic Club which is helping to organize this year’s event.

Click here for photos from last year (and a story) or follow the jump for all the details on the 5K, live bands, and more. [click to continue…]

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World Water Day At Lagoon Discovery Center

by The Editors on March 20, 2011

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Carlsbadistan’s Agua Hedionda Lagoon Discovery Center is hosting World Water Day 2011 on March 26, 2011.

This event will feature the SPLASHMOBILE (hands on science fun), SeaLife Aquarium’s Underwater Habitats, Native American Storytelling, children’s craft booths and facepainting, live critters from Kahoots, H2O Trash Patrol, Carlsbad Desalination Project model, Hubbs-Seaworld Fish Hatchery exhibit, Wetlands and Watershed models and maps, Nika Water, Native Garden Tours and water conservation info. Rain barrel raffle! Food, fun, and much much more!

World Water Day begins at 11 AM and will feature appearances by Supervisor Bill Horn and Carlsbad Mayor Matt Hall. That’s the part we’re really looking forward too. For more info, click the link.

[Link: World Water Day]

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Carlsbadistan Lagoon Dredging Pumps Up

by The Editors on December 15, 2010

Beach2The black pipe snaking along Tamarack State Beach can only mean one thing—the dredging is back. And, according to a post on DredgingToday engineers will be pumping up the sludge from the bottom of the Agua Hedionda Lagoon and stinking up our beach all winter by blowing it out into the ocean from now until May 2011.

The project consists of pumping 500,000 cubic yards of sand from the mouth of the lagoon to the beach in order to allow more cooling water to reach the Encina Power Plant. Beginning the week of Dec. 6, Cabrillo Power I LLC will position a dredging vessel and begin laying large black pipes adjacent to the seawall along Tamarack Beach. Approximately 100,000 cubic yards will be deposited on beaches north of Tamarack Avenue in January. Another segment of sand will be deposited between the jetties in February; the remainder will be placed south of the warm water jetty in March. The sand placement is expected to be completed by mid-April 2011. The equipment will be removed by the end of May.

To be clear—they are not dredging so we can have a more beautiful beach. We already have more than enough sand. They’re dredging so the Encina Power Station can continue to make power to sell elsewhere.

[Link: Dredging Today]

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State Beach Open & Sewage Free

by The Editors on October 10, 2010

Good news. Thanks to the Encina Wastewater Authority’s amazing sucking skills none of the sewage that spilled when when a pipeline was damaged actually reached the beach, according to a news release.

After review of flow monitoring data, the Encina Wastewater Authority (EWA) has estimated that 252,000 gallons of sewage reached the storm drain as a result from the pipeline failure. Recovery efforts included suctioning 388,800 gallons of water from the storm drain channel and 166,400 gallons from the Encinas Creek. Based on the recovered volumes and ocean monitoring results, it is not believed that any of the spilled sewage reached the Pacific Ocean.

This may be the one time when totally sucking is a great thing. Follow the jump for more info.
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Super Sweet September Sunset

by The Editors on September 28, 2010

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Summer in September continues with this epic sunset on Tuesday, September 28, 2010. Kind of makes us feel bad for people who have to live anywhere else.

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Carlsbadistan Air 8th Worst In Nation

by The Editors on May 18, 2010

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A recent report released by the American Lung Association listed the 10 cities with the worst air quality and guess what? San Diego County (including Carlsbadistan) was listed as number eight on the list of most polluted by Ozone (smog and industrial waste) and at number 17 in short term particle pollution.

Apparently, places that are sunny and warm are the worst for Ozone. That would explain why eight of the top 10 most polluted cities are in California. Trade offs, huh?

[Link: American Lung Association via NaturalNews.com]

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So Who Is Really Paying For Desal?

by The Editors on May 12, 2010

South Close2Few writers have pulled together a better overview of the entire Poseidon Resources Carlsbad Desalination Plant story than the DC Bureau’s Janet Wilson.

In Wilson’s 3,400 word piece titled Poseidon’s Desalinization Plant: Dream Water Supply or Draining the Pacific and Taxpayers? the USC Anneberg Hunt national health reporting fellow, covers most all the issues relating to how the plant will be funded, who will be paying the bills, and how those on both sides of the discussion feel about it. Read it, it may change your mind.

[Link: DC Bureau]

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Encina Power Station Forced To Stop Killing Fish

by The Editors on May 11, 2010

Low Tide13-1Last week the California State Water Resources Control Board voted to protect sea life by phasing out “once-through cooling for seaside power plants” like Carlsbadistan’s iconographic Encina Power Station because the process “kills more than 2.6 million fish and 19 billion fish larvae annually,” according to a story in the San Diego Union-Tribune.

“It will have the result of retiring a very high portion of the coastal, once-through cooled power plants,” said Steve Hoffmann, regional president for NRG Energy, which owns the Carlsbad facility. . . “We have to conform with this new water policy by the end of 2017,” Hoffmann said. “We either have to put in closed-loop cooling, or we have to have a way of screening marine life from our intake, which is technically very difficult.”

Maybe they could just dismantle the entire plant and ship it to Arizona. . . leaving the tower, of course. . .

[Link: San Diego Union-Tribune]

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