By Matthew Hirsch

The agency that operates California's electric grid recently issued a shocking ultimatum to local environmental groups: drop your appeal of an upgrade to the Potrero Hill power plant or it will delay closure of the pollution-spewing Hunters Point power plant.

In an Aug. 24 letter, state Independent System Operator vice president Randall Abernathy said the ISO would be forced to continue operating the Hunters Point plant indefinitely if the community resists the Potrero upgrade, despite a six-year-old agreement to close by 2005.

Communities for a Better Environment, Greenaction, and others are demanding a full environmental review of Mirant Corp's proposal to upgrade one of the natural gas-fired turbines at its Potrero plant with technology that could give the 40-year-old plant a new lease on life. But the ISO wants to move the retrofit through quickly and is using the Hunters Point plant – which everyone agrees is filthy and dangerous – as leverage.

The dramatic, unabashed political extortion has infuriated environmentalists and community leaders – particularly since the ISO's decision isn't based on good science.

Greg Karras, a senior scientist with Communities for a Better Environment, told the Bay Guardian there's no valid reason to keep the Hunters Point plant running. The plant has broken down many times in recent years, and it's never caused the lights to go out.

"That old plant could have shut down three years ago without causing any blackouts. The only thing keeping it open is the ISO holding out for the next new thing the power industry wants," Karras said.

The ISO Board of Governors agreed in July to study the Hunters Point plant's mechanical reliability and is expected to issue a report Sept. 15. But ISO spokesperson Gregg Fishman said he doesn't think the plant will be closed this year no matter what the study's results are.

"Having it available some of the time is preferable to having it available none of the time in the current conditions," Fishman said.

After negotiating with San Francisco officials and environmental groups such as CBE, the ISO spelled out what steps must be taken before the Hunters Point power plant can be shut down. The requirements included upgrades to the electric transmission system and installation of four city-owned power generators, but until recently they hadn't included the Potrero power plant retrofit.

The Potrero retrofit would reduce the amount of nitrous oxide discharged into the air, but it could lead to higher levels of other pollutants such as particulate matter, Karras said. And even if it helped close the Hunters Point plant, the retrofit would make it more difficult to reach another of the city's goals: shutting down the Potrero power plant.

Communities for a Better Environment, Greenaction, Bayview Hunters Point Advocates, and Literacy for Environmental Justice call for an environmental review of the proposed Potrero power plant retrofit at the ISO's monthly board meeting, Sept. 15, 9 a.m., 151 Blue Ravine Road, Folsom. The San Francisco Board of Appeals holds a hearing on the retrofit Sept. 22, 5 p.m., City Hall, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Pl., Room 416. For more information call CBE at (510) 302-0430, ext. 206.

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