As the community remains in limbo over Diablo Canyon’s planned closure, the SLO Chamber continues to push for approval of funds to mitigate the social, environmental and economic impacts.
The California Public Utilities Commission was expected to take up a proposed $85 million package agreed upon by plant owner PG&E and a coalition of regional governments at its December meeting but punted the issue to its Jan. 11 meeting.
Following an administrative law judge’s surprise recommendation to reject the settlement in November, the SLO Chamber joined regional business leaders in appealing to the PUC to approve the funds.
That perspective, shared in an open letter, was joined by the State Lands Commission and the region’s representatives, U.S. Rep. Salud Carbajal, state Sen. William Monning and Assembleymember Jordan Cunningham, who also wrote letters making the case for the package.
“We hope this chorus of voices from diverse perspectives convinces the commission that these funds are fair and critical to the public health, safety and economic stability of our small, nuclear-host community,” Chamber President/CEO Ermina Karim said.
The letters and other communications also advocate for preserving incentives to retain the plant’s highly skilled workers through its continued operation as well as the decommissioning process.
“These workers are crucial to the safe operation of the plant, which will continue to provide millions of ratepayers with the benefits of low-cost, carbon-free energy for several years down the road,” Karim said.
Read the full letter making a comprehensive case for the settlement from the SLO Chamber and nine other regional business organizations, as well as the letters from the California State Lands Commission and area legislators.