Sunrise Powerlink - Opposition

Opposition

The line is opposed by a diverse group of individuals, elected officials, community leaders and organizations. One elected official is San Diego County Supervisor Dianne Jacob, who is actively opposed to the route, and has testified before the CPUC in opposition to the project. The project is also opposed by a non-profit utilities watchdog group, the Utilities Consumer Action Network . UCAN, in a joint action with the Center for Biological Diversity, is challenging the CPUC's approval in the California Supreme Court. In addition, the project is also being litigated in federal court, by a coalition of three community groups; the Protect Our Communities Foundation, East County Community Action Coalition, and Back Country Against Dumps . These community groups are challenging the Bureau of Land Management's approval of the project on BLM land, on the grounds that the BLM failed to perform its legally required environmental reviews of the project.

One of the community groups in opposition to the project, the East County Community Action Coalition, was formed in March 2009 in response to the approval of the route through the east county of San Diego. The grass-roots organization states that in just one year, its membership has surged to include groups and individuals that together represent over 79,000 individuals. The coalition cites a variety of reasons for opposing the line, including the concern that the route will traverse some of the most fire prone areas of San Diego county, including the area that was burned in the 2003 Cedar Fire. The Cedar Fire is, to date, the deadliest fire in California's history, and ninth deadliest wildfire in U.S. history.

The CPUC, in its final decision, stated that lower-voltage distribution lines, not high-voltage transmission lines like the Sunrise Powerlink, were responsible for most power-line related fires in the San Diego area. Further, the CPUC instituted mitigation measures to further reduce the risk of fire.