CEC officials: Hayward's proposed Russell City plant should get

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Aug 24, 2007 | by Matt O'Brien

HAYWARD -- Overriding concerns presented by their own staff, two presiding board members of the California Energy Commission said a proposed gas-burning Hayward power plant ought to go forward after all.

The Friday decision by state commissioners John Geesman and Jeffrey Byron is just the latest chapter in a months-long approval process for the 600-megawatt Russell City Energy Center. It is also a sign that San Jose-based Calpine Corp.'s project is neither a dead deal nor a done deal.

In a 229-page report, the commissioners differed in opinion with state commission staff who warned earlier this year that columns of warm exhaust from the west Hayward plant could interfere with aircraft approaching the nearby Hayward Executive Airport.

"The commission has decided that those concerns do not merit denial of the petition and can be mitigated, as recommended by the Federal Aviation Administration, with appropriate notifications to pilots," the Friday report stated.

The commissioners also dismissed concerns raised by some Hayward residents about pollution impacts on health, saying "the evidence shows that there will not be significant health impacts and that the project will comply with all health-related requirements."

The decision overrides a July report from staff scientists of the California Energy Commission that recommended against construction of the Russell City plant, mostly because of aviation concerns.

But it is not the final decision. Geesman and Byron have served as the commission's licensing committee presiding over the Hayward project, but a final vote of approval or denial must be made by all five state energy commissioners at a hearing scheduled for Sept. 12 in Sacramento.

Before that, the commissioners will host a conference at 6 p.m. Sept. 5 at Hayward City Hall to discuss their findings.

Get the full story in Saturday's Daily Review.

Matt O'Brien can be reached at 510-293-2473 or mattobrien@angnewspapers.com.