California WRCB Says Climate, Reliability Justify Extending Gas Power Plant

California water board staff say ongoing and future climate change threats and the need to maintain grid reliability justify an amendment to their once-through-cooling (OTC) policy to allow an additional two-year extension for the operation of a controversial coastal natural gas-fired power plant in southern California. “While procurement efforts are still ongoing, a comprehensive stack analysis conducted by” state energy agencies “indicates that additional procurement is needed to mitigate grid reliability concerns, including projected shortfalls in summer 2022,” states a...