Admin

At the July 18, 2012, City Council meeting, representatives of Roseville Electric presented a proposal for the Roseville Energy Park Liquid Management System. The proposal is for Phase 3 of the system which would cover disposal of the wastewater generated from the power plant. As described, Phase 3 would consist of a 12-month process to obtain all the necessary permits and public outreach, to be followed by the actual 6-9 month construction period. The Liquid Management System would replace the current costly method of disposing of the wastewater, saving well over $1 million per year. The proposed new system would consist of two injection wells which would inject the wastewater to a low permeable salt-water level below the Aquifer system. Details of the plan were presented to the Council, and can be seen as represented to the Roseville Public Utilities Committee on June 26, 2012 and a FAQ from Roseville Electric at the City’s website. WFFNA President Sue Hallahan-Cook addressed the Council with concerns over any long range effects of injecting the wastewater into the Aquifer system and any other environmental impacts to the area. The West Roseville area will have 11 injection wells into the Aquifer System which will store drinking water when needed for the City’s residents. Assurances were made that full CEQA studies will be done by both the Federal Environmental Protection Agency and the California Energy Commission. As part of the public outreach, the CEC will participate and meet with neighborhoods to answer questions and concerns about the Liquid Management System. Although one public meeting had already been held at Sun City, Mrs. Cook asked that all neighborhoods and residents, especially those in the West Roseville area adjacent to the power plant, be kept in the public process. WFFNA will keep you informed as we hear further.

"City Council Members City of Roseville My name is Sue Hallahan-Cook and I am the current president for the WestPark – Fiddyment Farm Neighborhood Association. My comments will be on behalf of a list of over 400 of our WFFNA residents who have expressed concerns about the increasing density of the West Roseville area in general. Our homeowners bought in the West Roseville area based on a specific plan concept we agreed to, and accepted the extremely high Mello Roos assessments based on that concept. The WRSP states that “Emphasis has been placed on creating a vibrant, comprehensively planned community: one that generates a sense of place for residents and users, complements the existing community, ensures realization of City policies and defines Roseville’s western edge. All subsequent development projects and related activities in the WRSP area are required to be consistent with this Specific Plan.” In the five years that we’ve lived there, we’ve been notified of several changes to the WRSP, at first just minor changes. Then we received a proposal for Fiddyment Farm’s SPA 3 which would increase the overall density by 45% in the same area. Then we received plans of the Sierra Vista Plan which proposes another 8,679 homes, larger than the population of WRSP but with 1/3 less the area. The whole individual housing in that development is proposed to be built at a crammed density of 5-units per acre. The two specific plans (WRSP and SV) are currently proposed to include 26 high density apartment type complexes, about 25% of the offered area housing. Given the increased concentration of high density units, we are concerned that full consideration for all HDR facilities city-wide be mandated for ample on-site parking and accommodations for children and pets, things which are lacking in some current facilities. City representatives have expressed the City’s intent to expand the population to 300,000, more than twice its current population. Most of that building will obviously be heading towards West Roseville, where new building continues to expand. The residents of the West Roseville are already experiencing increased traffic issues, crowded school impacts and high school students having to travel up to 11 miles each way for school. Even with the proposed aquifer system for a series of wells in the West Roseville area, residents across the city have expressed growing concerns for the continued availability of good water given the expected population growth. We realize the City must meet certain state mandated growth expectations, but we ask that the City of Roseville reconsider the long-range effects of its expansion within the city and surrounding areas, especially towards over-crowding conditions which will contribute to traffic congestion and other negative environmental and social impacts and decreased property values. These items affect the well-being of the entire City of Roseville. Thank you for your consideration."