Important Vote On Oxnard Power Plant Postponed, Community Left Frustrated

OXNARD, Calif. (KEYT) — Oxnard residents say they’re frustrated that it’s taken so long to shut down the Ormond Beach power plant.
 
They say pollution from the natural gas plant is harming both residents and marine life.
 
They’re urging the California State Lands Commission to reject the lease extension of the power plant and to restore coastal access to Ormond Beach.
 
The power plant was originally scheduled to shut down in 2020.
 
Because of a record heatwave and fears of future blackouts the lease was extended to 2023 — and then again to 2026.
 
Though the vote has been postponed community organizers managed to schedule a town hall with 3 members of the State Lands Commission.
   
“They (California) want to use it as a backup source of energy when there are surges across the state. However, since we've invested so much money in California on new energy sources like solar and wind, we don't really need a really outdated old system that pollutes the local area and destroys marine life,” said CAUSE Policy Advocate Alex Mantanona.

“We see our coast as heavily armored with a bunch of industry. And this is not something that we see in all coastal cities,” said CAUSE Policy Advocate Aurora Rugerio.

She drew parallels to a similar situation in Redondo Beach, where she says a power plant was shut down after numerous complaints from the community.

One of the Ormond Plant operators spoke during public comment at Tuesday’s Town Hall saying, “It doesn't run very often, but when it does, it's essential to grid safety and reliability. And we've seen that in the past.”

The State Lands Commission will vote on an extension on a small component related to the pipelines that bring in ocean water to cool the plant.
 
That vote will take place in December.

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