 S. David Freeman, interim general manager for LADWP (inset) will be in Bishop at 7 p.m. Monday to talk about the utility’s proposed solar park on the bed of the Owens Lake. The process of using solar panels to control the dust problem in Southern Inyo is moving closer to being an approved mitigation measure. Photo of Owens Lake by Mike Bodine, file photo inset By Mike Bodine
Register Staff
1-9-2010 The interim general manager for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, S. David Freeman, also known as the “Green Cowboy,” will be in Bishop on Monday to discuss a proposed five gigawatt solar park on Owens Lake.
In a phone interview Thursday, Freeman said that the meeting is also a way to open lines of communication with the residents of the Owens Valley.
“I feel we’re entering a new era,” Freeman said, “and finally having a relationship with the folks in Inyo.”
He said as the former general manager for DWP from 1997-2001, he is fully aware of the relationship, or lack thereof, that has existed between Inyo and LADWP.
“In the past, DWP would do something and the people (of Inyo County) would be told what happened,” Freeman explained, adding that he hopes the public meeting will be a chance for community input and an opportunity for the residents to feel a sense of “ownership.”
He also said that the solar project could mean jobs for the area.
And, Freeman said, public comments could bring fresh eyes to the proposed project. “Maybe someone’s thought of something we’ve overlooked,” he said, encouraging the public to come out and share ideas.
He said the solar park is something “everybody can get behind,” as it saves water, generates power and creates jobs. The park will also be a way to help DWP reach its stated goal of receiving 40 percent of its electricity from renewable sources.
Freeman said he didn’t like the whole idea of pouring so much water on the lake during a drought when cattle ranches and others have to make due.
The panels for the project have been tested in wind tunnels, Freeman explained, and when placed in the right configuration on the lake bed, the panels will “break up the wind.” The problem with Owens Lake, he said, is the wind and if it can be slowed down, it will serve as a dust mitigation measure.
Freeman added that the measures are awaiting approval by the Great Basin Air Pollution Control District. Any dust control measures on the lake must pass the scrutiny of the district. So far, the only district approved dust measures are flooding and gravel.
Ted Schade, air pollution control officer for the district, said that DWP has hired several wind and solar engineers to get through the nuts and bolts of the park. The park will have to be efficient for DWP to both produce energy and be effective in controlling the dust.
A wind tunnel and scale model of the park has been built in Fort Collins, Colo. Schade said the key is to find a proper alignment, array and angle of the panels to slow the wind down on the surface of the lake. He gave an example of 60 mph winds that should be slowed to 15 mph underneath the panels for effective dust control.
“They’re close,” Schade said, with “hot spots” that could be handled with gravel.
The district is asking DWP to start with a five-acre posit park on the lake bed to see if the models are correlating with what’s going on on the ground. Schade said Freeman is asking for 80 acres.
The problem with the panels being able to handle the wind and the dust and actually generate power has been “exaggerated,” according to Freeman. He said washing down the panels once or twice a year should be sufficient.
But, he said, he is open to suggestions or comments from locals who may have some experience that could benefit the project, as well as a chance for DWP to share some of the project details with a curious public.
He said he was on loan from the mayor’s office serving as deputy mayor of Energy and Environment to serve in the interim position, but was adamant that the idea of a solar park will not be leaving with him.
The next person to fill the general manager position will have to be as committed to renewable energy as he is, Freeman said. L.A. City Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, the L.A. City Council and L.A. County Board of Supervisors are all supporters of renewable energy, Freeman said, and committed to having someone in the top DWP post who is just as committed to renewable energy sources.
Freeman said he is just as committed to improving the relationship with the people of Inyo.
The discussion on Monday will be about the solar park, but Freeman said if there’s any issue that residents feel DWP is moving too slowly on, he wants to hear about that too.
DWP’s discussion of the solar park will be at 7 p.m., Monday, Jan. 11 at the First United Methodist Church.
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