▪ Oregon Wild and Scenic Rivers Program
Sign up to receive action alerts via e-mail
Cogentrix puts "market hold" on power plant!
Jeff Freeman
704-525-3800
Jeffreeman@cogentrix.com
Cogentrix Puts Grizzly Power Project on “Market Hold”
Current power market conditions not conducive for project
to continue in active development.
Charlotte, NC-September 25, 2002-Cogentrix Energy, sponsor of the proposed 980 MW Grizzly Power project in Jefferson County, Oregon has placed the project on “market hold”. The project will remain of interest to the company for possible activity when market considerations are more conducive to the project moving forward.
Accordingly, the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council and other Oregon permitting agencies have been asked to defer their review of the project until notified otherwise.
“Circumstances within the electric power marketplace are very different today from what existed when we began developing the Grizzly project. Numerous events on both the supply and demand side of the industry make moving forward with the active development of the project impractical at this time. While regrettable, we believe that putting the project on hold until market conditions improve is the prudent course of action.
“We want to express our appreciation to everyone that supported our efforts to date, particularly the Madras/Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce staff for their tireless efforts on our behalf and those of their community. As is often the case with projects of this magnitude, opinions vary widely and the Grizzly project was not immune from debate. Under such circumstances it is often easier for community leaders to remain silent. This did not occur here. We are truly indebted to the Madras and Jefferson County elected and civic leaders for the time spent separating fact from fiction about our project. We appreciate them, their time and their support of the project”, said Jeff Freeman, Vice President of Public Affairs for Cogentrix.
Cogentrix Energy, Inc., headquartered in Charlotte, NC, acquires, develops, owns and operates electric generation and other power assets in the United States and internationally. Cogentrix has, in whole or in part, equity interests in 27 facilities in 14 states with a total generating capability of approximately 7,800 megawatts. For more information on Cogentrix, visit the corporate website at www.cogentrix.com
More information on Cogentrix
available below:
Energy Speculators Threaten Central Oregon Wild and Scenic Rivers and Groundwater!
“The nation will require 65 new power plants each year for the next 20 years to satisfy energy needs.”
Spencer Abraham, U.S. Secretary of Energy
Cogentrix Power Facility Lower Crooked Wild and Scenic River
The Problem
Cogentrix, Inc., of North Carolina, wants to build the $400 million 980-megawatt Grizzly Power Generation Project to sell power to California using Central Oregon’s scarce water. They have reapplied for a water permit through a subsidiary, Grizzly Power, Inc. The plant would be one of the largest plants ever constructed by Cogentrix Energy. If built on the proposed site 12 miles southeast of Madras, the Grizzly plant also would be the largest non-hydroelectric power plant in the state. The proposed plant would significantly affect the Wild and Scenic Lower Crooked and Middle Deschutes Rivers.
Scarce Water Consumed for Corporate Profit
Cogentrix is seeking water rights for eight wells in the Deschutes Basin, adjacent to the Wild and Scenic Crooked River. They have applied for a permit to the Oregon Water Resources Department. They are requesting 6,807 gallons per minute which is 15.17 cubic feet per second. The total annual withdrawal rate will be 2.92 BILLION gallons of water per year.
The single 72-hour well test last fall created a drawdown that lasted for days afterward with a lowering of the nearby well levels at Crooked River Ranch- a community of over 4,000 residents.
The Initial Review of the new Cogentrix application by the WRD was “unfavorable” due to the hydraulic connection to the Crooked River, because the water is NOT available at any time due to prior, senior water rights downstream, and such usage is NOT allowable in the Deschutes Basin from April 15 through September 30 of each year. Yet the application may be approved pending a mitigation plan developed by Cogentrix – a plan that will help improve stream flows somewhere in the Deschutes Basin, but not necessarily help those dependent on Crooked River Basin wells and groundwater users.
TAKE ACTION:
Write Cory Engel, Oregon Water Resources Department, 158 12th Street NE, Salem, OR 97301-4172. Ask OWRD to deny Application G-15731 on behalf of Grizzly Power, LLC.
FAX your letter to the Oregon Water Resources Department at (503) 378-8130
Cory Engel’s e-mail is: Cory.C.ENGEL@wrd.state.or.us
The public comment deadline is September 26th!
Below is a sample letter you can cut and paste or print out and send in via e-mail or by postal mail. Consider using the fact sheet below to provide your own comments to mail into the Oregon Water Resources Department.
Dear Cory Engel,
The Lower Crooked and Deschutes Rivers are rivers of regional and national significance. These rivers are the lifeblood of the high desert of Central Oregon. The impacts of the Cogentrix/Grizzly Power project are extraordinarily significant and put Central Oregon’s groundwater and the flows of these precious Wild and Scenic Rivers at risk.
USGS Ground Water Hydrology of the Upper Deschutes Basin, Oregon Report 00-4162 states, “Ground water and surface water are, therefore, directly linked, and removal of ground water will ultimately diminish streamflow…” In analysis of this water permit application please take the time to study all potential impacts of the Grizzly/Cogentrix Power proposal on the flows of the Crooked and Deschutes Rivers and the groundwater levels of the Deschutes Basin.
The natural flow of the Crooked and Deschutes Rivers are at risk and the “public interest” is in preserving this flow for future generations. The Cogentrix/Grizzly well field is ¼ mile or less from the Crooked River, in a hydraulically connected aquifer. The requested rate of appropriation is 15.17 cfs and substantial interference with surface water flows is likely.
Please uphold the Oregon State Scenic Waterways Act, as the requested water permit will affect the flows of the Deschutes River, designated under the Act. The Act “declares that the highest and best uses of the waters within State Scenic Waterways are fish, wildlife, and recreation. Allocations to new out-of-stream uses in State Scenic Waterways shall be consistent with the Scenic Waterways Act.” (OAR 690-0070 (2)(g))
Our concern is that the Wild and Scenic Crooked and Deschutes Rivers would be irreparably harmed if water right Application #15731 on behalf of Grizzly/Cogentrix Power is granted. I hereby request that Application G-1573 1 on behalf of Grizzly Power, LLC is denied.
Thank you,
Your name
Contact FLOW at 541-482-2049 or by e-mail for more information.
For info from the Madras/Bend community contact Mary Zemke, STOP Cogentrix, mzemke@earthlink.net.
Click here for a link to news stories about Cogentrix Power…
Cogentrix Energy, Inc., headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., acquires, develops, owns and operates electric generation and other power assets in the United States and internationally. Cogentrix has, in whole or in part, equity interests in 28 facilities in 14 states with a total generating capability of approximately 7,800 megawatts. For more information on Cogentrix, visit the corporate Web site at www.cogentrix.com
CONTACT: Jeff Freeman, VP of Corporate Communications of Cogentrix Energy, Inc., 1-704-525-3800
Pictures from near the proposed water drilling site for Cogentrix Power and the site where the power plant is proposed for construction.
Proposed Cogentrix site with Grizzly Mountain in the background.
If approved, there would be a 980 MW power plant in the middle of this picture.
The spectacular canyon of the Lower Crooked River, just downstream from the proposed water drill site for Cogentrix Power.
Proposed Cogentrix Power site is adjacent to this power substation.
All of the power produced by the proposed Cogentrix Power Plant would go to California.
Sentiments run clear and strong in the Deschutes Basin.
Grizzly/Cogentrix Power discussion points:
*FLOW will post our full comments on the water permit as soon as they are complete...
1. USGS Ground Water Hydrology of the Upper Deschutes Basin, Oregon Report 00-4162 states, “Geologic evidence and hydrologic budget calculations indicate that virtually all ground water not consumptively used in the upper Deschutes Basin discharges to the stream system upstream of the vicinity of Pelton Dam. Moreover, virtually the entire flow of the Deschutes River at Madras is supported by ground-water discharge during the summer and early fall. Ground water and surface water are, therefore, directly linked, and removal of ground water will ultimately diminish streamflow…The effects of ground-water pumping can be expected to be attenuated and delayed in a similar manner and spread out over time and space. Depending on the location of a well, several years may pass between the time pumping starts and the time the effects of the pumping are reflected in diminished discharge. It is important to note that the same physical processes that delay the onset of the effects of pumping on the streams also cause those effects to linger after pumping ends. So several years may also pass between the time pumping stops and the time the effects on streamflow end.” Groundwater withdrawals in the basin will eventually reduce the amount of water discharging into the river system. According to the USGS study such a large water permit would threaten the flows of both the Middle Deschutes and Crooked Wild and Scenic Rivers.
2. OAR 690-410-0010
“The groundwaters of the State of Oregon belong to the public. The reasonable control, protection, and use of groundwater is governed by the state on behalf of the public. Groundwater shall be managed to promote efficient and sustainable use for multiple purposes. Groundwater overdraft and contamination shall be prevented to avoid health hazards, environmental damage, and costly correction programs. Interference between groundwater uses and competing groundwater and surface water uses shall be prevented and/or controlled to protect the water resource and existing rights.”
Cogentrix/Grizzly is a single use facility with no usable discharge. The flows reduced by this facility are significant and will result in decreased water availability for competing groundwater/surface water uses. The best way to avoid immediate conflicts with existing water rights in this area (where no new appropriations of this magnitude should be approved) is to deny the permit.
3. OAR 690-0070 (1)
“The waters of the state shall be allocated within the capacity of the resource and consistent with the principle that water belongs to the public to be used beneficially without waste. Water shall be allocated among a broad range of beneficial uses to provide environmental, economic, and social benefits. The waters of the state shall be protected from over-appropriation by new out-of-stream uses of surface water or new uses of groundwater."
Cogentrix/Grizzly is asking for a water permit in an area that simply cannot afford to provide this large of a water appropriation among the existing beneficial uses of water. The Initial Review of the permit was deemed “Unfavorable” and “Bad” by Cory Engel of the WRD for three reasons: 1) The Cogentrix well site is hydraulically connected to the Crooked River and has the potential for substantial interference with streamflow 2) No water usage is allowed from April 15 to September 30 in this area of the Deschutes Basin, and 3) The amount of water requested, 5,555 gallons per minute, is not available at any time due to prior, senior water rights downstream.
4. OAR 690-0070 (2)(j)
“When classifying allowable new uses of water or establishing reservations, the Commission shall seek consistency with management plans for public lands and resources, and with state, regional, and local resource management and economic plans;”
The Water Resources Commission will have difficulty ensuring consistency with management plans for other management agencies. Furthermore, since this water permit is very significant, consultation with federal agencies is necessary to ensure compliance with federal laws.
5. OAR 690-400-0010(12)
“’Public Interest’, as a standard for reviewing new uses of water, means a beneficial use which is consistent with state law and includes providing the greatest good for the people of the state based on current values, protecting water rights and conserving water resources for present and future generations.”
The Crooked and Deschutes Rivers are nationally designated Wild and Scenic Rivers. These rivers are used by thousands of recreationalists. The natural flow of the Crooked and Deschutes Rivers are at risk and the “public interest” is in preserving this flow for future generations. Furthermore, groundwater is notoriously scarce. Preservation of groundwater is a very significant step in ensuring water resources for future generations.
- OAR 690-009-0040 (4)
“All wells that produce water from an aquifer that is determined to be hydraulically connected to a surface water source shall be assumed to have potential to cause substantial interference with the surface water source if existing or proposed ground water appropriation is within one of the following categories: (a) The point of appropriation is a horizontal distance less than one-fourth mile from the surface water source, or (b) The rate of appropriation is greater than five cubic feet per second, if the point of appropriation is a horizontal distance less than one mile from the surface water source; “
The Cogentrix/Grizzly well field is ¼ mile or less from the Crooked River, in a hydraulically connected aquifer. The requested rate of appropriation is 15.17 cfs; therefore substantial interference with the surface water is likely. This project would reduce the flow of the Wild and Scenic Crooked and Deschutes Rivers and these rivers are of local, regional, and national significance.
- OAR 690-0070 (2)(g)
“The Scenic Waterways Act declares that the highest and best uses of the waters within State Scenic Waterways are fish, wildlife, and recreation. Allocations to new out-of-stream uses in State Scenic Waterways shall be consistent with the Scenic Waterways Act. Allocations to new out-of-stream uses in and above State Scenic Waterways shall not interfere with the maintenance of flow levels necessary for the purposes of Scenic Waterways;”
USGS Ground Water Hydrology of the Upper Deschutes Basin, Oregon Report 00-4162 states, “Geologic evidence and hydrologic budget calculations indicate that virtually all ground water not consumptively used in the upper Deschutes Basin discharges to the stream system upstream of the vicinity of Pelton Dam. Moreover, virtually the entire flow of the Deschutes River at Madras is supported by ground-water discharge during the summer and early fall. Ground water and surface water are, therefore, directly linked, and removal of ground water will ultimately diminish streamflow…The effects of ground-water pumping can be expected to be attenuated and delayed in a similar manner and spread out over time and space. Depending on the location of a well, several years may pass between the time pumping starts and the time the effects of the pumping are reflected in diminished discharge. It is important to note that the same physical processes that delay the onset of the effects of pumping on the streams also cause those effects to linger after pumping ends. So several years may also pass between the time pumping stops and the time the effects on streamflow end.”