DCC Needs to Reconsider Their Proposed Generator Requirements, Says Letter to the Editor
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Hello to all,
It has been brought to our attention the new proposed regulations concerning generators.
Many of our farms are off grid and have been told by PGE that they will not supply power. The notion that solar power is green friendly is an arguable subject. We would like to see a study highlighting the social, environmental, and monetary benefits of solar. If we are concerned about the environment we probably shouldn’t divert the effects of mining, manufacturing, shipping, and child labor on other countries. These obvious impacts are against CEQA and shouldn’t be allowed to subvert the rules.
In my area we have tractor trailer generator units operated by PGE using up to 10k gallons of diesel a day to supplement the grid. The question we ask is how is PGE allowed to run 500kw generators nonstop in countless places when we are restricted to 50hp with a 3 year window of retirement?
We live in a very rural location and are snowed in for 3-4 months out of the year. The powerline crosses our property and is 100′ from our proposed home, processing facility, and drying building. We contacted PGE to quote a power drop. They told us it would likely be 4 million and they would bring a line from 15 miles away. They also said the project would take 5-7 years to complete as easements, permits, and CEQA studies were completed. This story is a mirror to many farms in our rural counties. If these proposed generator requirements are passed 1/3 of farms will not be able to comply. The farmers of northern California wish you would reconsider these changes and implement a better plan that involves the environment, society, and economics.
Thanks for your time,
Geoffrey Churchill
Please note: Our previous title incorrectly stated that PG&E is responsible for the regulations.
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Suggest you move to Central Valley. Good power, better climate, lots of water and good soil, lots of cheap agricultural labor, close to highways for distribution.
All in all… it’s a winner !
I agree. This is not a PG&E requirement, it is the state trying to wean us off of inefficient (and polluting) fossil fuel machinery. There is no reason a cannabis farm should be considering using a generator to light / grow their crop when we have a bountiful light source in the sun. Basic accounting will show you you will never be able to grow your product at the quality and price point necessary to compete; and the fuel, emissions and spillage will damage the pristine remote environment you were attracted to. Solar energy, even at 50KW, is far cheaper (and less resource intensive) than PG&E routing and supply should you chose that route, but far less efficient than growing naturally in the sun. Dairy farms in Sonoma County (Straus, etc.) are doing well with solar and methane capture, powering electric trucks and tractors. That is the future, and gives the next generation a chance…
Our apologies. The title was in error.
You’re batting .500 there Bozo. Good power, cheap ag labor and good highway system for distribution yes. Lots of water, better climate, and good soil no.
California gets 48% of it’s power from burning natural gas generators.
https://www.energy.ca.gov/data-reports/energy-almanac/california-electricity-data/2020-total-system-electric-generation
small solar systems with generator back up are not a major impact.
They are far less polluting than a portable diesel generator tho.
Obviously you have never been there is you think the central valley has a better climate.That is pure insanity. The water is cheap/free for ag though, that is true, becaue it is stolen from the north.
Well…I’m not aware of how PG&E can force you to retire your generator. But it sounds like you bought a place that was one thing and now you want it to be another? I’ve lived way off-grid in similar situation and I never wanted 50 kw! What’s that for- you running a bunch of grow lights? way out there?! That idea is over what with the price of gas or diesel anyway. Sounds like your place is way out there which should be beautiful and peaceful yet you want to build a house 100 feet from high-power lines?! I don’t get it- your letter sounds kinda wacky…maybe you bought a lemon of a property
Dude you can refine and run your genny on hemp oil
50kW. I’m not sure about the whole story here or what the actual numbers are and the details behind the retirement time period but if they are remote and off grid they should probably be getting into a battery system as soon as possible because I can’t see how it would be cheaper to run a generator as your main continuous source of power over having a solar panel system. It all costs a lot of money. If you are living off grid and using 4kW, 5kW, 10kW, 20kW, plus amounts of continuous power draw…….maybe it’s time to see the sustained illusion and at least be honest about it. I would only think they would be that constrained by their generator if they were using a lot of power by running indoor warehouse grow operations or had such massive production that their drying area was so big that the fan power consumption would be high. If they are doing that way up in the wilderness maybe it’s time for a reality check. If not, I think they still have good logical arguments in what they are saying and they shouldn’t just have things arbitrarily imposed on them regardless of shifting opinions.
The letter writer doings aside, it would be worth a look to see if this generator restriction thing is a thing or not. What are the details of this restriction? Is it a proposed law or PG&E right of way clause? Is it due to power line proximity? Does it apply to smaller generators? Is the three year expiration based on continuous running? If your small generator gets used just a few times a year over those three years are you s.o.l. in 2025? Did I propose enough questions for a journalist? Not that they don’t already have their hands full.
If PG&E needs to run lines from 15 miles away then it sounds like the power lines above your proposed house are distribution lines which have a much higher voltage than your normal power lines. It’s not like they can just tap into those lines wherever they please.
Actually, you kind of have it backwards. What the writer needs is a distribution line that “distributes” power. What is on his property is most likely a transmission line that transmits power at very high voltages over long distance. All of the local transmission lines, as far as i am aware, are 115 KV. Is is insanely expensive to tap those lines. The transformers are the size of a minivan. Normally, those lines are tapped at a substation and then power supplied to the locals at around 13 KV. The only generator law I am aware of the the one that will prohibit the sale of fossil fuel generators in the future.
?♂️
YES, transmission lines. Haven’t had my coffee yet.
The 115kv lines you mention are primarily used as grid tie lines to import / export power out of Humboldt County, and to connect Humboldt Bay Generating Station to the grid. One line generally follows Hwy 299, the other line generally follows Hwy 36, then ties into the main intertie line, in Cottonwood.
The main Transmission lines within Humboldt County are rated at 60 kv, and those are the ones that interconnect the various substations situated within Humboldt County. From those substations, the voltage gets stepped down to 12 kv, which then is considered Distribution level voltage.
There is a 60kv line that goes south to Mendocino County, but it’s more of a substation tie line, which is pretty loaded up.
It takes special requirements to privately tie into a Transmission line. Typically those customers that are tied in with their own customer owned substations have a minimum load requirement of around 1.5 mw and up. And it typically takes over a year or more to secure permission to tie into a Transmission line, provided certain criteria is met. It’s a long and arduous process, and also requires CPUC and CAISO approval to do so.
Geoffrey, I appreciate your letter, but unfortunately there are several issues that are being conflated. The generator restrictions are from the DCC and prior from CDFA. To change these rules you need to have the legislature vote on a bill. Maybe a regulations change, but I think these rules are in statue.
PGE really sucks, but their use of giant gennies cannot be used to justify your gennie use. CEQA doesn’t work that way and accounting for the impacts of the alternative (ie solar) energy production systems isn’t easily incorporated into a CEQA doc. You might be able to make a case in an EIR (statement of overriding considerations), but that’s very expensive and time consuming and still won’t change the DCC requirements.
Can you use multiple smaller gennies under the wattage thresholds? Maybe Humboldt has restrictions too that I’m not aware of. Sorry but this seems like an uphill battle.
The title was our error.
Ok, no problem. You and your team are great.
Air Quality Management Districts set up this permitting. >50 bhp generator is a genset permit, always. No statute about it.
Ok good to learn. I recall there being something about requiring renewable energy per DCC or carbon credits and maybe that’s my confusion. Honestly I’ve had to move on as the industry is on its death bed and I can’t tie my future to it.
Carbon offsets being higher than utility provider GHG.
Genset permit is not linked. >50 bhp is anyone. Airborne Toxic Control Measures from 15 years ago.
Can you run multiple generators under 50 bhp then and not have this be an issue?
Cracked the code.
You are part iof the problem. Grow in the sun and stop your futile hope of making a killing in cannabis. It can’t be done unless you are adequately capitalized before you start. Which you obviously are not.
You can’t possibly think that this isn’t a ruse to bring us back to the dark ages. Nothing else makes sense in the world unless you are Batshit crazy
Wanted to be off grid but wants to use lots of power to grow dope. Typical grower hypocrisy
The pie in the sky syndrome
Yes back to the landers. DONT BE GREEDY. Grow a summer crop the sun is free and environmentally safe. Why do you need 4 crops a year ???
Go with the sun…
This is Easter sunrise…
Environmental policies that tax and limit traditional energy production, before new alternatives are developed into effective practical alternatives, is not only incredibly expensive and reckless, for the working class but may collapse modern society, at the rate things are going. I won’t be surprised when the push, for zero emissions leads to people burning furniture, to keep from freezing.
http://www.powerlineblog.com › archives › 2020Why “Green” Energy Is Impossible | Power Line
They will freeze or burn regardless. There is no coherent policy, nor is one likely.
The uber-rich will be warm. They will just throw poor people on the bonfire to keep it burning…do not doubt this
Zero point energy was taken away from us in the name of what national security issue again. ..?
Of course, the profits from fossil fuels and natural gas.
It was not taken away from us, it is pseudoscience nonsense.
Was Tesla JP Morgan’s bitch.
Yup
That’s the problem with national security designations that kept the massive economic gains in holding up fossil fuels as our only option….a corporate boondoggle.
I’ve recently noticed a hum this winter spring in my neighborhood that has never been here before… Not sure what to do. I don’t like telling peoeple what to do or how to live on their land, but it is annoying as fuck.. what should I do? I don’t think they speak English as a first language and I’m not tryin to make enemies… I also love near the highway and the river, so noise is normal.. but it is a new noise at night and in the early morning hours, when the sound of the river is all I’d like to hear.. suggestions accepted
Call the sheriff?
Be humble, polite, respectful and ask them to put some sort of soundproofing around it. They probably will say yes but won’t do it the first time, but they might. It’s very likely one of them does speak a little English and can understand more with a bit of mild pantomime. If it’s very very important to you then offer to pay part of the materials the second time you ask and come up with a plan for them. That’s what I would do. If it’s a scenario I’m imagining, believe me, YOU will want to come up with a plan.. Unless they have a carpenter. Offering to pay part makes them loose face if they don’t do it. They are probably as concerned about making enemies as you are if they don’t speak English. Your only other options are to turn them in or live with it.
I’m sorry but this letter is just stupid. Mr. Churchill you are the reason the law is being created. The plant only needs sun, water, good soil and love to grow. Growing any other way does not provide the plants true potential, end of statement.
Gotta agree. The letter reads like someone hasn’t been paying attention for the past 5+years. It was obvious with the first round of temp regs that they wanted to force cannabis out of the hills and into the valley, preferably indoors at that.
Nah, they hate indoor, they are deluded by the naturalistic fallacy and unrealistic examples of outdoor cannabis production that do not represent reality.
Who hates indoor? As I recall the NCRWQCB and SWRCB regs give great latitude to indoor which just means and impermeable floor and permanent roof. They got no riparian setbacks. Many indoors are CEQA exempt or have reduces environmental docs. Maybe not true in Humboldt, but that was just me general take. I’ve never been licensed for indoor.
I agree with LL…
Why would you need 50KW?
Why is solar and battery not enough?
Who can afford to operate a 50KW Generator?
You can get PGE, just pay them the 15 Million $, and start your own utility district, if you don’t like it!
Hell, build a Cold Fusion plant!
It has been interesting to watch the greenhouses being torn down, as the price of pot has plummeted…
It is possible to make a generator with old car parts, like alternators and fans! Try it yourself at home! See old copies of Mechanic’s Illustrated or the Whole Earth News…
Good luck, and quit your fuss!
Maybe find a new location. Industrial ag that requires power shouldn’t be located so far out of town. Neighbors that have generators going night and day just to grow pot is crazy.
“The question we ask is how is PGE allowed to run 500kw generators nonstop in countless places when we are restricted to 50hp with a 3 year window of retirement?”
Let me make it easy for you.
PG&E is a public utility providing power for everyone.
You are dope growers who have only been interested in your own illegal “farming”, tax evasion, environmental destruction, drug addiction, and societal destruction (Garberville might be a perfect example).
I am one of many people who look forward to your “farm” failure.
How about this, stop your conspicuous consumption of resources to fuel your dope growing operation. Last year my 700 watts of solar and less than 10 gallons of gas for my 3000 watt backup generator supplied all the power I needed. My battery bank was always above 70%. Simple when you choose simplicity instead of greed.
That is a great question, as pge should not be allowed to do that. But two wrongs wont make a right.