While local environmentalists have long advocated for a cleaner energy alternative to the power monopoly PG&E, the county's plan to launch its own clean power company has divided the environmental community within Petaluma.
While some are ready to move forward with Sonoma County's proposed plan, others say that cities have not had enough time to study the complex proposal.
"This is a major, multi-million dollar undertaking," said David Keller, chair of the large environmental group Sonoma County Conservation Action and former Petaluma City Council member. "Conservation Action has always been supportive of creating an independent energy company. But we want the institution to work and achieve its goals - and to do so without arm-twisting cities to sign up before they can do their due diligence."
Though concerns are prevalent in the environmental community, not everyone shares them. Almost 60 Petaluma residents, including a former Citizen of the Year and a former programs manager at the environmental group Daily Acts, signed a petition asking the Petaluma City Council to rethink its decision not to join the county's power program before the July 9 deadline. Matt Maguire, a past City Council member active in local environmental issues, was among them.
"While the county has not done a great job of communicating with communities, I think Petaluma would be in a better bargaining position to ask for changes to the (power authority's) contract if we sign on now," said Maguire. "The beauty of Sonoma Clean Power is that it's not a for-profit venture. It's about reducing our carbon footprint, which is something we need to do right away."
If adopted, Sonoma Clean Power will consist of all Sonoma County cities that wish to participate creating a joint power agency with the unincorporated county area. Each city would have one council member represent them on the agency's board of directors. During votes, veto power could often rest in the hands of the unincorporated area of the county and Santa Rosa - the jurisdictions that account for more than two thirds of power use in the county.
Petaluma, Cloverdale and Rohnert Park voted not to join the agency by the July 9 deadline, saying they needed more time to study the proposal. All three cities voiced a willingness to join at a later date, if their research leads them to believe it would be the best move for their residents. Because they did not sign onto the joint powers agreement, these cities will not be a voting member of the board of directors if they decide to join later. Healdsburg already has its own power company and will not join.
That leaves Sebastopol, Sonoma and Santa Rosa still trying to decide whether to join the agency by the deadline. Windsor and Cotati have both signed on to the county's program.
The agency says it will initially offer 33 percent of its power from clean energy sources - 65 percent more than PG&E, which gets 20 percent from clean power sources. While many people applaud a cleaner energy option, critics say about half the county's renewable supply would come from buying clean energy credits that are not always from truly green energy sources. These concerns, as well others, like the cities only having two months to look over the proposal, the county's refusal to disclose bids from 11 different energy providers vying for the county's contract, and concerns over ratepayer protections, have made many wary of the effort.
After meeting with county power representatives Monday, Keller expressed continued disappointment at what he called inadequate ratepayer representation on the county's agency. Keller pointed out that the ratepayer advisory committee will consist of unpaid members who will have no voting power. He also noted that the board of directors will be able to remove any members it chooses to, at any time.
"If you don't like something going on, how do you protest it?" asked Keller. "We're glad the conversations between the county and the public are finally happening, but we need more time."
Meanwhile, business interests in town also say that they have not had enough time, nor gotten enough answers to support the county's proposal.
"We don't feel like buying energy credits is really creating a cleaner energy company," said Petaluma Area Chamber of Commerce President Onita Pellegrini. "We also have other concerns, like protections for ratepayers and who is supplying the energy, that just haven't been answered yet."
The City Council voted in May to postpone their decision to join Sonoma Clean Power until later this year, giving staff time to study the proposal. Staff will also explore creating its own power company like Healdsburg, or possibly joining Marin County's power agency.
(Contact Janelle Wetzstein at janelle.wetzstein@arguscourier.com)
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