Just heard from Lisa Goza, of Stop TANC, that Modesto and Turlock dropped out, following SMUD’s withdrawal last week.  That’s supposedly 70% of the $$$$ for the project — gone!   Redding is hanging in there, but the STOP TANC crew is on them and… well… maybe tomorrow morning at the TANC board meeting, they’ll give it up, throw in the towel, and tank TANC.  It’s so close…

This group is amazing, so many people spread out over such a great distance, and they’re so wildly diverse, united against this obscene project built on lies — they’ve exposed the TANC project for what it is,  and it is falling… this is a case study in how to organize for impact.

Soon… it’s time for the silver stake!

Yolo supervisors reject transmission power lines

By LIZETH CAZARES/Lcazares@dailydemocrat.com
Created: 07/14/2009 03:49:59 PM PDT

The Yolo County Board of Supervisors attempted to short out a proposed high-voltage power line by sending a letter recommending the end of the long-debated project.

TANC, or the Transmission Agency of Northern California, is proposing to erect high-voltage power lines across Yolo County in an attempt set in place future renewable energy projects scattered throughout the state.

On June 30, TANC representatives spoke with Yolo County about the project, but after a lengthy discussion the board was not convinced the project was a good idea. While supervisors emphasized their commitment to renewable energy, they questioned the feasibility of the project and expressed their displeasure with TANC’s inability to work with local governing agencies.

Now, after the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Turlock Irrigation District and the Modesto Irrigation District all withdrew from the project, the board decided to officially request that TANC end its project.

On Tuesday the board recommended to send a letter requesting that officials put an end to the project and adopt protocol for working with local government in the future.

Two more players drop out of TANC proposal

* By Scott Mobley

Two more TANC power line backers have defected, perhaps dooming a power line that has galvanized grass roots opposition from Cassel to Davis and beyond.

The Transmission Agency of Northern California board will hold a special telephone meeting this morning to consider whether to go ahead with a proposal to build the $1.5 billion, 600-mile-long power line.

Members of the public may participate in the meeting by telephone from the Redding Electric Utility office at City Hall and from 16 other TANC member offices around Northern California.

Turlock Irrigation District and Modesto Irrigation District on Tuesday followed the Sacramento Municipal Utility District in pulling out of planning for the high-voltage power line, slated to stretch from Lassen County to Silicon Valley.

Read the rest of this entry »

I think the crowd was more like 300, full of green T-shirts and they had a successful march on the Cascade Theater.  Incredible organizing by all of the many Stop TANC groups involved.

It’s tired out… gotta be on a plane first thing, at “too early o’clock”…

200 attend anti-TANC rally

• By Record Searchlight staff
• Posted July 8, 2009 at 3:16 p.m.

Nearly 200 green-shirted “Stop TANC” activists this afternoon have filled a room at the Holiday Inn in Redding to oppose Transmission Agency of Northern California plans for a 600-mile long high-voltage power line through the north state.

Lisa Goza, a Round Mountain power line opponent who helped organize today’s rally, urged the crowd to attend the July 21 Redding City Council meeting to persuade city officials to follow the Sacramento Municipal Utility District and pull out of the TANC project.

Carol Overland, a Minnesota attorney who has litigated against proposed power plants and transmission lines, told power line opponents to keep fighting even though SMUD, one of the largest backers of the TANC power line, pulled the plug on its planning for the project.

“It’s not over,” Overland said. “You’ve got some breathing room now. When they are down, kick them, and kick them again. Don’t let up. Being nice doesn’t help. You’ve got to crank down and really kick these guys.”

Opponents of a proposed high-voltage transmission line attend a rally Wednesday afternoon at the Holiday Inn in Redding.

Les Baugh, Shasta County supervisor representing the south county, said the TANC power line proposal has been misconceived and poorly planned from the start.

“They didn’t have to do it this way,” Baugh said. “They were not trying to co-locate these lines. That would have been a simple answer.”

Power line opponents from Yolo, Glenn and Tehama counties joined property owners from Round Mountain, Oak Run, Happy Valley, Cottonwood and others potential in the proposed transmission line’s path.

Goza, the Round Mountain activist, said opposition won’t stop until TANC pulls the proposed line off the federal register and halts the planning process.

“We want them to cancel this project, just like they canceled our meeting,” Goza said, referring to TANC’s decision to postpone a planned outreach meeting that had been scheduled for this evening at the Cascade Theatre.

Power line opponents still plan to march later this afternoon from Redding City Hall to the Cascade Theatre, where activists say they will demonstrate to TANC they will continue demanding answers to their questions. The march starts at 4:30 p.m.

Baugh said he was disappointed TANC put off the meeting, and power line officials will not meet there with north state residents to answer questions.

“Had they held that meeting and I had an opportunity to ask a question, I would have asked them, how do you mitigate a life?” Baugh said.

And about SMUD’s withdrawal from the TANC project (which should TANK the project):

Agency Withdraws From Project

By Craig Macho
Staff Reporter
cmacho@oakdaleleader.com
209-847-3021, ext. 8128

POSTED  July 8, 2009 2 a.m.

The Transmission Agency of Northern California (TANC) was dealt a blow recently when the Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) informed the transmission agency that it was withdrawing from the project.

TANC is a California Joint Powers Agency (JPA) composed of 15 cities and utility districts from throughout the Central Valley, Bay Area, and other locations in Northern California. Agency members include the cities of Alameda, Biggs, Gridley, Healdsburg, Lodi, Lompoc, Palo Alto, Redding, Roseville, Ukiah, the Modesto Irrigation District (MID), Plumas-Sierra Rural Electric Cooperative, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Silicon Valley Power, and the Turlock Irrigation District (TID).

SMUD would have covered approximately 35 percent of the cost of the 600-mile long transmission line project.

Those who have homes, farms, and other property in the path of the proposed project have criticized TANC and the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA). Critics have noted the agencies, which have the power to seize land via eminent domain, solicited little public input prior to releasing maps of the proposed path of the transmission lines.

A number of Oakdale area residents have spoken out in opposition to the project. A grassroots movement has also recently formed in both the Oakdale and Ripon areas to challenge the transmission line project.

Over 150 local residents turned out June 11 at the Almond Pavilion banquet facility in Oakdale for an update of the controversial $1.3 billion project and the transmission agency’s plan to construct and upgrade roughly 600 miles of high-voltage electric transmission lines and associated facilities in Northern California.

Another meeting will be held in Ripon sometime later this month.

According to a press release from TANC, outreach meetings by the agency have been put aside for now.

“In light of this recent development, all remaining public outreach meetings on the TTP that are scheduled during the month of July will be postponed. This time will enable TANC and its members, the Western Area Power Administration (Western) and other government agencies involved in the planning process to evaluate their options and to define the next steps in the process,” the release stated.

“TANC believes it is important to keep the “public scoping” period open during this time. Allowing the scoping process to proceed will help determine where to put the transmission lines needed to ensure reliable and affordable electric service for the residents and businesses throughout northern California and to expand access to clean energy sources such as solar, geothermal and wind energy,” the release concluded.

Sharon Ott, one of the organizers of the June 11 meeting in Oakdale, said she was pleased with the news SMUD had withdrawn. She continues to be concerned, however, of the project’s impact on the Oakdale area. She noted the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA), a federal government transmission project, is still planning on using the Oakdale corridor to bring power from the Sierras to the Bay Area.

“We’ll continue with our opposition to WAPA,” she said.