SC Edison Under Fire For Tree Butchery And San Onofre Nuke Dump
Written by 991KBU on March 19, 2019
Southern California Edison is the utility company whose faulty transmission lines caused the Thomas Fire … and a year later likely caused the Malibu Fire.
Now the company is increasingly under fire across Southern California for other issues.
Residents in Altadena are furious … because Edison is trimming trees that have stood for generations on their streets.
Much like in Malibu … Edison is moving across its Southern California service area.
KPCC Radio in Los Angeles reports people in Altadena are really angry.
One woman confronted a tree crew supervisor and recorded the exchange on her phone.
“Look at this tree. The whole side of this tree is hacked off! Now it’s not likely to live,” said resident Liz Culpepper.
They have starte din Malibu … and over the next two years … Edison is mounting a massive new tree-trimming campaign.
And the San Onofre Nuclear Dump … 70 miles down the coast from Malibu … is another red hot issue.
The former nuclear power plant was shut down … a 5 point 4 billion dollar Eidson engineering blunder left it useless.
But hundreds of containers of red hot nuclear fuel remain next to the San Onofre domes.
The Orange County Register reports that a decision is due any day from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission …. as Eidson wants to restart itsloading of the nuke fuel into dry storage bins.
Edison has buit a concrete monolith next to the ocean … to store the nuclear waste until the federal governemnt can come up with a permanent storage solution.
That decision is 30 years overdue.
The official go-ahead to resume loading could come from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as early as next week.
Last August a 50-ton canister got stuck near the top of the 18-foot vault where it was to be entombed.
The slings supporting the canister’s massive weight went slack, and it hung there, unsupported, for close to an hour, in danger of dropping.
Edison says it has put many new checks and balances into place that will prevent the errors of the past from repeating themselves
Lots more people hired.
New cameras installed.
Critics are not pleased.
SanOnofreSafety.org says the storage system is a lemon and must be recalled and replaced.
The three nuclear waste mishaps in 2018 … gives them an urgency to oppose the Edison nuclear sump next to the ocean.
OC Register story: https://www.ocregister.com/2019/03/18/edison-makes-changes-at-san-onofre-ready-to-resume-loading-nuclear-waste/
KPCC coverage: https://www.scpr.org/news/2019/03/18/88708/new-edison-tree-trimming-campaign-to-reduce-fire-r/
