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American Morning
Energy Crunch: George W. Bush Makes First Presidential Visit to California
Aired May 29, 2001 - 10:12 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Our top story once again: President Bush making his first visit to California as president, bringing to mind the energy crisis and what California is going to do about the shortage of energy and the rising prices. Six new major gas fired power plants are expected to be built in Kern County, California over the next few years. The plants would add much needed power to the statewide grid.
Joining us now by phone to talk more about the power crunch is Pete Parra. He is Fifth District supervisor for Kern County. Pete, good morning. Thanks for joining us.
PETE PARRA, KERN COUNTY SUPERVISOR: Good morning.
KAGAN: Kern County looking to be the energy supplier for California?
PARRA: Well, we hope to, once the plants are built, to produce almost 4,000 megawatts, or that would light up about four million homes.
KAGAN: Let's look at this, six new major gas fired power plants. Most people would hear something like that and say you go build that someplace else, not in my county, not in my backyard.
PARRA: Well, you have to understand that Kern County, 8,000 square miles, a very large county, a very rural county, where these gas plants are going up, very sparsely populated and we understand the need for electricity here for our state of California.
KAGAN: What about environmental concerns?
PARRA: We went through that process -- because, again, a very sparsely populated, close to the gas fields that will feed the power plants, the permit went rather smoothly.
KAGAN: So how long would it take for this to make an impact?
PARRA: We're looking at the first one, the largest one, La Paloma probably will be operating here in, oh, partially operating within four or five months.
KAGAN: Now, your area of the state already producing more than your share of energy, yet folks in your district, as I understand it, still pay the same kind of high electricity bills that folks in other places in California pay.
PARRA: That's correct.
KAGAN: That doesn't seem very fair, Pete.
PARRA: That's correct. We're doing our part and we would just, would like to ask the governor and the legislature maybe to exempt us from some of these blackouts because we do need to generate that power.
KAGAN: Well, as a fellow politician, if you could sit in on this meeting today with the governor, Gray Davis and President Bush, what would be your two cents you would add to these two gentlemen?
PARRA: Well, only to the point is that we need to get together on this issue. There are some federal issues involved, before our economy and before we have major impact on our unemployment. So I would hope that they would come together and join in an energy policy that is good for California and good for the country.
KAGAN: As a fellow politician, do you kind of worry that these two very high powered politicians might get caught up in the politics and forget about the people who are just having to face these high electricity bills?
PARRA: Well, let's hope not because I think right now it's California's problem but it's spreading to the western parts of the northwest and pretty soon it will become a U.S. energy problem.
KAGAN: Pete Parra, good luck with all those plants in Kern County.
PARRA: Thank you very much.
KAGAN: Thanks for joining us this morning.
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