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Opponents Show Up In Force For Workshop On Proposed New Power Plant In Oxnard

A controversial proposal to build a new power plant in Ventura County brought hundreds of people to a marathon meeting held by a state agency in Oxnard.

Members of the California Energy Commission heard about a staff report for NRG’s planned power plant at Mandalay Beach, in Oxnard, and took comments on it from environmental groups and the City of Oxnard, as well as from the public.

The plan calls for replacing two of the three facilities now at the beach with a new plant. The 262 megawatt facility would be a peaker plant, which means it would be used to help the power grid at peak demand times.

Ventura County Supervisor Jon Zaragoza was one of the many who spoke. He blasted the proposal, saying Oxnard already has more than its fair share of industrial facilities, and that enough is enough.

The Puente Power Project Plan has drawn widespread opposition from environmental groups, residents, and the City of Oxnard. Staff members have said that it appears that most of the environmental concerns of the project could be mitigated. The meeting was a workshop, with no decisions being made.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.