NIMBY: Kendall, Pinecrest and South Miami residents oppose giant FPL power lines, too!

The Not-in-My-Backyard (NIMBY) folks are out in full force. First Pinecrest and South Miami didn't want new power lines on US1 (South Dixie Highway) through their communities on their way to the Downtown Miami substation.  Unsightly and a health hazard they call them.  Now Kendall doesn't want them either and with good reason.  Kendall was never a consideration until Pinecrest and South Miami raised a stink.  It's worth noting that the two former communities harbor some of the most well connected and wealthy individuals in the county, so their voices will be heard.  Kendall on the other hand, not so much.

However,  they can agree on one thing:  Florida Power & Light (FPL) should burry the lines. Unfortunately, these communities don't want to pay for this cost prohibitive alternative.  It's great that the citizens aired their grievances and suggestions to FPL, but they should've taken a calculator and a well sharpened pencil so they can perform basic arithmetic.  Spare the modern gadgetry for now the math skills sink in better when doing it the old fashioned way.

One thing is for certain these communities appear adverse to a compromise with themselves let alone with FPL.  The Kendall leaders are pushing FPL for the power lines to go East while Pinecrest and South Miami leaders are lobbying for power lines to go further West.

For us in Homestead, home of the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant and the Homestead Energy Services (HES), we're used to having power lines criss-cross our back yards. There are several substations within the city including interconnection sites between the companies. Homestead is unique in South Florida in that it has its own electric company whose service boundaries are not an exact overlay of city limits.  It's rather profitable as we have residents from outside the city pay HES versus FPL. This in effect helps keep property taxes down as the city funnels profits into the the general fund, but that's a story for another time.

The power lines in question are the same power lines that provide our neighbors to the north with the power they need to run their homes and their fully connected lives.  FPL doesn't have to worry about Homestead residents though, we will allow FPL to install their power lines with little fanfare since the route taken is mostly through the woods, marsh, and easements through a golf course already utilized by FPL. The established routes cross the Keys Gate Golf  course heading West before making a sharp turn North through the Everglades on their way to the Pensuco substation. Homestead surely won't be asking for the lines to be buried either unlike the other communities.  We're adamant about keeping electric bills within reason while avoiding unnecessary surcharges.  The choice will be made soon and we will keep you informed as this project progresses.

Kendall residents oppose giant FPL power lines - Kendall - MiamiHerald.com

Pinecrest mayor says state senator backs FPL against his constituents - Political Currents - MiamiHerald.com

http://www.fpl.com/environment/lines/tp.shtml

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Jackpot! East Side Annexation Area Includes FPL's Turkey Point

On Wednesday May 15th the City Council voted to conduct a study to possibly annex the Unincorporated Municipal Services Area (UMSA) east of the city up to Biscayne Bay using Biscayne Dr (SW 288th ST) and SW 352nd ST as the north and south boundaries respectively.  It appears from the map below that part of Florida Power & Light's Turkey Point land and it's northern surrounding property falls within the Homestead Annexation Study area. The facility itself appears to fall south of theoretical SW 352nd ST. If this is the case the tax boon will not be as lucrative but it's not chump change by any means. FPL also owns other large parcel of lands further north near the Homestead Air Force Base (AFB).  Essentially, FPL would be the largest land owner in the new annexed area and with this ownership comes the biggest tax bill.  One may suppose this is the primary  purpose for annexation never mind the reasons given about incorporating Homestead Bayfront Park. The money is in the millage rate charged for the land owned by FPL plain and simple.

There is a method to the madness down at City Hall because it didn't really make sense to annex an area outside the Urban Development Boundary (UDB) unless there was an immediate return on investment (ROI) for the effort.  Especially, since the city is running through reserves like a sailor on shore leave.  Surely, one could suggest the City Council is exhibiting foresight to incorporate areas for future growth, but historically that hasn't been the case.  Shotgun Houses, Baseball Stadium, Seminole Theatre, are but a few examples of the lack of this scarce skill set down at City Hall.  

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Turkey Point Reactor Shutdown Prompts NRC Inspections

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) will increase oversight at Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant.
This facility is approximately 6 Miles east of Homestead on Biscayne Bay. Why is this important?  Below is picture of the facility and a diagram map from the Environmental Report providing a 50-mile radius of the facility.  Broward County may appear far to us but not when it comes to Nuclear Fallout.  If anyone needs any reminders here's the link to a picture of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant in Japan.

FPL Turkey Point Environmental Report - Operating License Renewal Stage Units 3 and 4
Plant-Specific Actions in Response to the Japan Nuclear Accident at Turkey Point Unit 3

Reference Links:
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/news/2013/13-037.ii.pdf

Reactor shutdowns prompt inspections at Turkey Point - Miami-Dade - MiamiHerald.com

http://blogs.cas.suffolk.edu/jtl192/2012/10/23/fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-disaster/

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Homestead Annexation Area Study Heads to East Side

The Homestead City Council decided it was not worth battling the residents' opposition to conduct a feasibility study on the West, North, and Northwest annexation areas. A study will be conducted on the East side annexation area only. This area mostly outside the Urban Development Boundary (UDB) bounded by the eastern city boundary to the west, Homestead Air Force Base to the North, Turkey Point to the South and Biscayne Bay to the East in mostly unpopulated.

Reference Links:
http://southdadenewsleader.com/issue/south-dade-news-leader/article/homestead-approves-annexation-study-for-east-side-only

http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/05/16/3401157/homestead-drops-talk-of-annexing.html

Urban Development Boundary Map.

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Board of County Commissioners 12/13/12 Zoning Hearing on Turkey Point

The below link contains the files for the application, including letters, graphics and impact analysis.

http://www.miamidade.gov/business/track/zoning_show.asp?proc_num=Z2012000090

9,219 acre project, water reuse for the two approved reactors to be discussed. 

http://www.eco-voice.org/node/13321

FPL intends to use some 90 million gallons a day of treated wastewater from Miami-Dade County as the primary source of cooling water for its controversial $12 billion to $18 billion expansion project at the sprawling plant, which sits along south Biscayne Bay a few miles from the park headquarters.

But the utility also wants to drill a series of “radial wells’’ — named because they include up to a dozen shafts radiating out 900 feet from a central well, a design evoking bicycle spokes — that would be capable of drawing up to 125 million gallons a day of water through the porous limestone beneath the bay.

A report by the South Florida Water Management District noted “some concerns” the wells could potentially turn already too-salty coastal waters saltier, compromise Everglades restoration projects to restore fresh water flows to the bay and worsen salt-water intrusion that has already marched inland in South Miami-Dade and threatened drinking water supplies.

But the district’s analysis, based on computer modeling supplied by FPL, also recommended approval of the wells – under the condition that the utility operate them no more than the “equivalent of 60 days” over a 12-month period and monitor impacts on sea grass. The proposal faces several more hurdles before final state approval.

Mark Lewis, superintendent of Biscayne National Park, urged the district’s governing board to postpone the vote, saying the district had not consulted with park scientists as it had in past studies of Turkey Point’s impacts on surrounding shallow waters, which are thick with sea grass beds and mangroves that serve as nurseries for an array of marine life.

According to FPL’s computer modeling, 97 percent of the water collected by the wells would be salty bay water but Lewis called that work “suspect,” saying the geologic zone where sea water meets the Biscayne Aquifer, source of much of Miami-Dade’s drinking water, is not well understood. FPL and water managers, for instance, are still working to assess the role Turkey Point’s existing cooling canal system has played in pushing salty water inland.

“We’re betting the bank that the modeling works when all of our scientists say the modeling isn’t designed for this and isn’t really good in this region,” Lewis said.

Environmentalists echoed Lewis, saying the complicated report on a well system untested in South Florida’s porous limestone geology had been available for only a week. They also called a proposed monitoring plan toothless because it included no specific measures for FPL to scale back the wells or pursue another back-up source, such as the deep Floridan aquifer, if the wells prove more damaging than modeling predicts.

“The question is who is on the hook to deal with the impacts,” said Kahlil Kettering, a Biscayne Bay analyst for the National Parks Conservation Association.

Laura Reynolds, executive director of the Tropical Audubon Society, questioned whether the wells were intended solely as a back-up, saying the 60-day language would potentially allow continuous low-level operation in a bay starved for freshwater.

Peter Robbins, a spokesman for FPL, said the wells were “absolutely a back-up system’’ and the utility preferred to treated wastewater over salt water but needed the short-term back-up because of potential uncertainties over the quality or quantity of wastewater. He downplayed potential impacts to the Biscayne 
Aquifer, saying the modeling was “tremendously conservative’’ and based on a scenario using wells as a full-time supply rather than the 60-day limit FPL has agreed to..

Juan Portuondo, a Miami businessman who serves on the governing board, said both FPL and the county had vested interests in making treated sewage work. Under state law, Miami-Dade has to find a way to reuse some 117 million gallons a day of sewage by 2025 that it now pumps up out to the Atlantic, he said. “It’s the best solution for both.’’

Board members briefly discussed postponing the vote but unanimously approved it after hearing the agency faced a Monday deadline for filing recommendations to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Other agencies, including Miami-Dade County, which also has questioned the wells, will file similar recommendations. An administrative judge is expected to issue a recommendation sometime next year. Final approval will go to Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Cabinet.

FPL hopes to secure its license from federal regulators for the two new reactors by June 2014. If the utility goes ahead with the project, the new reactors would be scheduled to go online in 2022 and 2023.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/12/v-print/2893242/fpls-nuke-cooling-plan-clears.html#storylink=cpy

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Turkey Point Layoffs

 

 

 

 

South Florida Business Journal

Date: Wednesday, November 14, 2012, 1:10pm EST
Bechtel Power Corp. has warned the state of Florida of 277 possible layoffs at Florida Power & Light’s Turkey Point Nuclear Plant in Florida City.

The Frederick, Md.-based company filed a Worker Adjustment & Retraining Notification notice with the state on Tuesday.

The Bechtel employees have been working on contracts with FPL to expand two nuclear units at the Turkey Point Nuclear Plant. One of the units is completed.

The projects have employed about 5,000 workers over the past several years.
FPL spokesman Peter Robbins said the remaining work is on schedule and due to be completed in spring of 2013.

All work by Bechtel is expected to be completed by May 26, according to the WARN.

“Construction project work by its very nature has a defined completion date," Bechtel Manager of Operations Brian Reilly said in a statement. "As a project nears completion, the skill sets of specific people are no longer required. We provide our people with assistance with this transition and, quite often, we are able to find positions for people on other Bechtel projects.”

The 277 employees are to be laid off between Jan. 6 and May 26. The workers include 77 field engineers, 49 superintendents, 44 design engineers and 22 welding field engineers.

http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/news/2012/11/14/bechtel-power-corp-warns-of-277.html

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