{"id":10444,"date":"2014-09-16T07:51:26","date_gmt":"2014-09-16T11:51:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?p=10444"},"modified":"2014-09-16T11:58:27","modified_gmt":"2014-09-16T15:58:27","slug":"duke-energy-and-sabal-trail-at-suwannee-county-commission-2014-09-02","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2014\/09\/duke-energy-and-sabal-trail-at-suwannee-county-commission-2014-09-02.html","title":{"rendered":"Duke Energy and Sabal Trail at Suwannee County Commission 2014-09-02"},"content":{"rendered":"

\r\n\r\n\"300x219<\/a>\r\nDuke Energy reps couldn’t answer any questions beyond their canned\r\npresentation, not about water use, not about their permit application to FL-PSC\r\nfor a new site, and not about Sabal Trail pipeline routing.\r\nBut the Suwannee County Commission passed their requested resolution\r\nanyway for a pair of new natural gas turbines.\r\n

\r\nUpdate 16 September 2014<\/strong>: Here’s video<\/a> of Debra Johnson’s find<\/a>:\r\n

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\r\n Mr, Oxendine (chairman) announced at the end of the meeting that “they are not ignoring the Sabal Trail Pipeline and its threat to Suwannee County. Mr. Oxendine also stated “he has instructed Mr. Harris and Mr. Prevatt (County Attorney) to evaluate the situation and consider doing something similar to the other counties that have passed resolutions and ordinances against The ST pipeline in their counties.” Next meeting tomorrow night Tuesday 09-16-2014 at 6pm.\r\n<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

<\/H4>\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x223<\/a>\r\n\r\nSomeone (apparently county staff)<\/a> introduced\r\nthe Duke item<\/a> in the agenda below:\r\n

\r\n

\r\nfor the construction of two new simple-cycle combustion turbines and\r\nassociated equipment as well as a 40 by 100 administrative building.\r\nThe turbines will be fueled by natural gas….\r\n<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\nIt’s Duke’s existing land plus a bit more they’ve bought.\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x222<\/a>\r\nLocal resident Debra Johnson\r\n\r\nasked Duke to withdraw their plans<\/a>.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

<\/H4>\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x220<\/a>\r\n\r\nBobby Pickels<\/a>, \r\nDistrict Manager, North Florida<\/a>, Duke Energy,\r\nsaid they were currently in negotiations with “another company”\r\non the purchase of an alternate site,\r\nand that would still have to get approval from a “regulatory agency”.\r\nSo they were continuing to pursue the Suwannee County project.\r\nIf the other project gets approved, “obviously we would have to\r\nre-evaluate” the Suwannee County project.\r\n

\r\nDebra Johnson then \r\nwanted to know<\/a> “is there any plan to run Sabal Trail’s pipeline through that area?”\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x223<\/a>\r\n\r\nAmy Dierolf<\/a>, \r\nLead Environmental Specialist<\/a> for Duke Energy,\r\nsaid “the existing gas at the facility” would be used to fire the new turbines.\r\nShe was “not aware of any details” of Sabal Trail supplying gas to the facility.\r\n

<\/H4>\r\n\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x220<\/a>\r\n\r\nA Commissioner<\/a> wanted to know about new water wells and water use.\r\nDieroff said they “would withdraw water from the Suwannee River for cooling”.\r\nThey would drill new wells rather than draw more water from the river.\r\nShe was not aware of how much.\r\nThe idea was to retire old wells in favor of the new wells.\r\n

\r\nThe Commissioner wanted confirmation that there would be no water\r\nwithdrawal from the Suwannee River for the new turbines.\r\nShe confirmed that.\r\n

\r\nHe wanted to know why wells rather than river water.\r\nShe said the groundwater was better quality for process rather than cooling.\r\n

\r\nHe wanted to know how much water.\r\nShe said “a minimal amount” of water.\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x220<\/a>\r\nHe wanted to know about dirty waste water.\r\nShe said it goes into a holding pond already on the site.\r\nAnd domestic wastewater from the operations building would go\r\ninto a septic tank.\r\n

\r\nThe Commissioner said he wasn’t concerned about the septic tank,\r\nrather the turbine water.\r\nOnce again “I don’t have those numbers.”\r\nShe added they’d have to get a permit from the DEP.\r\n

\r\nHe wanted to know about noise: increased decibles?\r\nShe said it shouldn’t, and she could get more details if needed.\r\n

\r\nDebra Johnson\r\n\r\nwanted to know<\/a>\r\nsince Duke had announced in the press that it was going to drop\r\nthe Suwannee County plant and Sabal Trail had said it was going\r\nto change the route of the pipeline, could Duke please address those things.\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x221<\/a>\r\nBobby Pickels\r\n\r\nseemed to have some trouble understanding the question<\/a>.\r\n

\r\n

\r\nThe question was how does potential siting of this facitlity impact\r\nthe route of Sabal Trail?\r\n<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

<\/H4>\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"300x219<\/a>\r\nDebra Johnson \r\nclarified<\/a> that on the day\r\n\r\nthat Duke made its announcement<\/a> (26 August 2014)\r\nabout moving its new turbines elsewhere,\r\n\r\nSabal Trail sent a letter to FERC<\/a> about rerouting the pipeline\r\naway from that area (actually two days later, 28 August 2014).\r\n\r\n(26 August was the same day FERC directed Sabal Trail<\/a> to find paths\r\nthat did not cross the Withlacoochee River in Florida.\r\nDebra Johnson added that her question was whether the permit\r\nwould have any impact on that routing.\r\n\r\n

\r\n<\/a>\r\nPickels said he had no knowledge of that and he was not familiar with any\r\npotential impacts.\r\n

\r\nJohnson said she just wanted to make the board aware of that.\r\n

\r\nWith no further discussion,\r\n\r\nthe Commission adopted the resolution Duke had requested<\/a>.\r\n

\r\nThen the Chairman(?) \r\ncommended Duke<\/a> for including in their submission answers to all the questions\r\nnecessary for the adoption of the resolution.\r\nNevermind the other questions asked at the meeting that Duke couldn’t answer.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

<\/H4>\r\n

\r\n\r\n<\/a>\r\nYou can come see Duke’s plant for yourself from the Suwannee River,\r\n10 AM Sunday 21 September 2014, in\r\n\r\nthe WWALS outing down the Withlacoochee and Suwannee<\/a> past both\r\nthe current Sabal Trail pipeline proposed crossing points.\r\nWe don’t know quite where the newly-proposed Suwannee crossing point will be yet.\r\n

\r\nNote that\r\n\r\nanyone from the audience<\/a>, not limited to local residents\r\nor property taxpayers, can speak, and on any agenda item. Makes you\r\nwonder what the Lowndes County Commission is afraid of, doesn’t it?\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nHere is video of the\r\n\r\nfirst hour and 26 minutes<\/a> of the meeting, a playlist for the whole meeting<\/a>,\r\nby Debra Johnson.\r\n

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