LANDFILL VOTE PROPOSED KERN COUNTY SITE PICKED, AND ALSO DUMPED ON.Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer MOJAVE - A Missouri-based firm and its partners hope to put before Kern County voters a $1 billion landfill and renewable energy Renewable energy utilizes natural resources such as sunlight, wind, tides and geothermal heat, which are naturally replenished. Renewable energy technologies range from solar power, wind power, and hydroelectricity to biomass and biofuels for transportation. project proposed on old farmland and open desert south of Red Rock Canyon There are more than 30 parks and canyons in the U.S. named Red Rock Canyon: Parks
Proponents say the High Desert Green Energy Park, proposed about 15 miles north of Mojave, would provide a major economic boost to Kern County, but opponents criticize it as an example of Los Angeles' dump-it-the-desert mentality. Backed by Missouri-based Herzog Environmental Inc., the project is proposed on 3,100 acres of privately owned land, which would be turned into a trash landfill, a construction debris processing and recycling facility, and solar, wind, and biomass energy facilities. Proponents need to collect 15,000 signatures to put an initiative on the November ballot to amend the county's general plan and zoning code, necessary to permit the project to go forward. ``It (the initiative process) is constitutionally protected method that involves the main stakeholders Stakeholders All parties that have an interest, financial or otherwise, in a firm-stockholders, creditors, bondholders, employees, customers, management, the community, and the government. , the taxpayers,'' said Brandon Martin, a Bakersfield attorney who is the project manager. ``It's not an end-run around the local officials.'' If approved, the project would be the largest landfill in Kern County. It would handle up to 18,000 tons of Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, trash per day, as much as 5,000 tons of construction debris, and up to 2,000 tons of organic material for the biomass energy facility, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a document filed with the county elections department. Project documents show the landfill covering 1,500 acres about three miles east of Highway 14 and six miles south of Red Rock Canyon State Park, touching one border of the Desert Tortoise desert tortoise see gopherus agassizii. Preserve Natural Area. The energy facilities would be about a mile west, lying along Highway 14 about a mile south of Jawbone jaw·bone n. The maxilla or, especially, the mandible. Canyon Road, the entrance to a popular off-roading area. ``The measure serves the County of Kern through encouraging the development and operation of a specific recycling and renewable energy project that provides a long-term economic stimulus that will lead to job creation and substantial tax revenues for decades,'' project proponents said in the document. Opponents include Kern County Supervisor Don Maben, whose district contains the landfill site landfill site n → vertedero landfill site n → centre m d'enfouissement des déchets landfill site land n . Maben said the landfill would put 700 trucks a day on the Antelope Valley Freeway The Antelope Valley Freeway is a freeway in Los Angeles and Kern counties in southern California. It is signed as California State Highway 14 along its length. It connects Greater Los Angeles to the rapidly developing Antelope Valley. and Highway 14 through Mojave, adding to traffic and causing air-quality issues. The initiative would prevent county officials from overseeing its operations, he added. Maben said the project would create problems for flight-test operations out of nearby Edwards Air Force Base Edwards Air Force Base, U.S. military installation, 301,000 acres (121,805 hectares), S Calif., NE of Lancaster; est. 1933. It is one of the largest air force bases in the United States and has the world's longest runway. and the China Lake Naval Warfare naval warfare Military operations conducted on, under, or over the sea and waged against other seagoing vessels or targets on land or in the air. The earliest naval attacks were raids by the armed men of a tribe or town using fishing boats or merchant ships. Center at Ridgecrest. The landfill would attract birds, which would increase the danger of aircraft hitting birds; hamper night flying because of lights; and would not be subject to tower height restrictions enacted by the county to prevent conflicts with military low-level flying, he said. ``It will hurt the Air Force and it will hurt the Navy,'' Maben said. Martin said meetings with the military are planned to go over the project. The project will not go forward if it hurts their operations, he said. ``We will work with them,'' Martin said. Maben said another objection is the lack of a guarantee that the energy component of the project would be built. Martin said the energy facilities are vital to ensue en·sue intr.v. en·sued, en·su·ing, en·sues 1. To follow as a consequence or result. See Synonyms at follow. 2. To take place subsequently. the project's economic viability. One of the reasons that particular site was chosen is because a power line runs along the southern boundary, letting the project tie into the state's electricity grid. ``The real assurance is that it's in our best economic interest to do that,'' Martin said of building the energy component. The effort opposing the project is focused on informing various jurisdictions about the issue and gathering potential allies. Much of the campaign against the project won't be unveiled until closer to the election, Maben said. In June, Kern County citizens will vote on a ballot initiative that would ban the use of treated human waste as farm fertilizer, aimed at stopping 750 tons a day of Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. sewage sludge trucked into a farm owned by Los Angeles west of Bakersfield. ``We will be educating the voters so they don't buy into it,'' Maben said of the November landfill vote. Maben has requested the assistance of Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich Michael Dennis Antonovich (born 1939 in Los Angeles, California) is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors representing the Fifth District, which covers northern Los Angeles County, the Antelope, Santa Clarita, Pasadena, and parts of the San Fernando and San . Antonovich's staff is researching the issue, said field representative Norm Hickling. ``The supervisor does not want Los Angeles trash coming up the 14,'' Hickling said. Also objecting to the project is state Sen. Dean Florez Dean Florez (born April 5, 1963 in Shafter, California) is a California State Senator. He has represented the 16th District since 2002. He was reelected to a second term on November 7, 2006. Florez was born and raised in the Central Valley. , D-Bakersfield, backed the sludge-ban initiative and who called the landfill measure an end-run around local officials. If the initiative passes, the oversight of the landfill would be left to state agencies with little contact with Kern County officials. ``I think voters here have been on the receiving end of enough trash to see through the scheme, but as a business plan, it pays off big for Herzog if they win. I can see this scenario playing itself throughout California until they find a taker tak·er n. One that takes or takes up something, such as a wager or purchase: There were no takers on the bets. taker Noun ,'' Florez said. Florez introduce two bills as a result of the project. Senate Bill 1835 would block permitting for landfills approved by a ballot initiative unless the facility is consistent with local, state, and federal law, including local planning, zoning and development requirements. Martin said the project will have to comply with state and federal environmental laws. In all likelihood, Kern County would be the lead agency in that process. ``Kern County will be involved before it breaks ground,'' Martin said. Senate Bill 926 would require proponents to have a completed environmental impact report prior to an election informing voters of the scope and impact of such projects. Proponents say the project will be an economic powerhouse, providing 100 permanent jobs and as much as $100 million in annual tax revenue. Proponents said a major feature will be the establishment of a nonprofit charitable foundation that would provide $15.5 million in the first five years to benefit ``the economy, environment, and general well-being of the region.'' The foundation would be funded with $5 million a year after the first five years, according to a document filed with the county elections department. The project will also help the county be a leader in renewable energy sources and promote recycling, according to the document. The landfill would not use any taxpayer money. The landfill also would not be used to collect hazardous waste Hazardous waste Any solid, liquid, or gaseous waste materials that, if improperly managed or disposed of, may pose substantial hazards to human health and the environment. Every industrial country in the world has had problems with managing hazardous wastes. , sludge, or medical waste, according to the document. Jim Skeen, (661) 267-5743 james.skeen(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): map Map: Proposed Landfill and Energy Facilities Daily News |
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