Fall / Winter 2008-2009

Forest Service denies standing, but BLM appeal still pending

Power Plants on Mount Shasta Less Likely!

by Michelle Berditschevsky

Vulcan lacks standing in appeal to Forest Service Chief !

As we go to press, we have learned that Vulcan Power Company’s appeal of the Forest Service decision not to consent to geothermal leasing on Mount Shasta will not be entertained by the Chief of the Forest Service. The Chief determined that Vulcan does not have standing to appeal Regional Forester Randy Moore’s decision, which is based on the recognition by Forest Supervisor Sharon Heywood that Mount Shasta is an “iconic landmark known world-wide for its beauty and spiritual significance.”

The Forest Service letter’s dismissing Vulcan’s appeal determined that the company did not meet the requirements under regulation 36 CFR 251.87, which states that only a holder of “a written instru-ment issued for the occupancy and use of National Forest System Land,” or some-one applying in response to a written solicita-tion, is eligible to appeal. Vulcan “does not meet either of these requirements,” states the letter.

However…BLM appeal still pending

Vulcan’s second appeal, which challenges Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) rejection of the lease applications, is still pending in the Interior Board of Land Appeals (IBLA), according to the BLM California State Office. The April 2008 rejection was based on the non-consent decision by the Forest Service. BLM’s regulations (43 CRF 3201.1) are clear that the agency holding surface jurisdiction, in this case the Forest Service, has the ability not to consent to leasing. At this time, it’s not known whether the IBLA can override the Forest Service’s or BLM’s positions. We won’t know for sure until the appeal is decided, which typically takes two years.

Vigilance Still Needed

The question of whether Vulcan has dropped its ambitions on Mount Shasta is still open. The company recently made requests under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to the Forest Service. We are countering with similar requests. With one appeal down, one to go, the Vulcan threat is fading somewhat. But it is still in the picture, and we continue to be vigilant.

What is at stake

Vulcan has held industrial geothermal lease applications on Mount Shasta since 1992. If granted (heaven forbid!), the leases would give the company rights to geothermal drilling and construction of power plants on 28 square miles encircling the Mountain and reaching high on its slopes, with some leases just below the wilderness boundary. In 2007 the company relinquished its lease applications on the west and south sides to concentrate on the 13 square miles in the Whitney Falls-Brewer Creek area adjacent to the wilderness boundary and down to Military Pass Road. The current project is called Military Pass, but this is deceiving since the potential lease area includes higher elevations in hydrologically and ecologically sensitive areas.

The company’s plans currently include two 30-megawatt power plants with associated clear-cut well pads, rigs drilling as much as 9,000 feet into the Mountain, pipelines, night lighting, constant noise, as well as air and water pollution. These are all well documented impacts of industrial geothermal development. Geothermal development uses similar resource extractive equipment and techniques as oil drilling (including toxic acidification of deep-level strata to pool the resource), and results in a degraded, visually blighted, polluted landscape. This is not appropriate at this pristine source of waters!

A 20-year shift

The current process is showing is that our 20+ years of involvement to maintain Mount Shasta’s pristine sacred environment has gained wholehearted support on the local agency level. We are far from the time when development permits were granted with barely any scrutiny. Most locals now understand that Mount Shasta needs to be preserved in a pristine state…for those who live here…for Native Americans…for visitors who come from all over the world…and for its own inherent value.