City Council Reinstates Power Plant’s Productivity

By Daniel Pineda

The company that has long operated the Southeast Resource Recovery Facility (SERRF) in Long Beach will see if it can turn a profit, city officials say – even though half of the trash-to-energy plant’s current revenue has been cut off by a new state law.

On Jan. 17, the Long Beach City Council put to a vote the signing of a rewritten contract with Covanta Energy, a private energy-from-waste company working in the city of Long Beach. The signing of this contract, according to Long Beach Director of Energy Resources Bob Dowell, allows Covanta to continue operations of the power plant until June 30, 2024, when Long Beach’s current plan calls for decommissioning the facility.

“Due to ongoing agreements for special waste and refuse pricing flexibility, Covanta is better positioned to profitably continue to operate service operations until the end of the current contract term,” said Dowell. “Along with maintaining SERRF’s current operations, it is anticipated that the requested amendment will shift the city’s financial risk to Covanta and insulate the city from further financial liabilities.”

Dowell continued: “With the requested amendments, staff projects that the SERRF fund group will have approximately $6 million remaining funds available on the June 30, 2024 contract term date, which will be available for the commencement of service decommissioning operations should they become necessary.”

Prior to the City Council’s vote on the matter, several public speakers were given the chance to voice their opinions on the reinstatement of the power plant. Some spoke against the idea of the power plant’s continued use of burning trash for energy.

“Community members have voiced their concerns repeatedly on the impacts SERRF has caused, and we have expressed our needs for a future where we do not rely on burning trash,” said Kimberly Amaya, a member of the East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice. “The lack of commitment to look into alternative solutions from the city of Long Beach has exposed our community to unfair health risks.”

Amaya urged the City Council to vote on the closure of SERRF, as well making the city’s conversion to zero-waste energy a top priority.

Another public speaker who voiced their opinions during the city council meeting was Dave Shuka, a member of the Long Beach Alliance for Clean Energy. According to Shuka, the city needs to decommission the incinerator at SERRF, as well as all energy-from-waste productivity, as soon as possible.

“This city, particularly the city staff in the gas and oil department, have failed to plan for a future where Long Beach is not dependent on trash burning,” said Shuka. “That failure has led and continues to put some of our most polluted and vulnerable communities at risk.”

Shuka also urged the City Council to commit to managing organic waste through compost and soil regeneration for the benefit of Long Beach’s constituents.

“The city could create hundreds of good union and public sector jobs, by processing and handling waste in our own city boundaries,” said Shuka.

In the end, the Long Beach City Council voted 8-0 in support of continuing to use the facility, wanting to both keep the plant running as well as continue working toward the reduction of climate pollution, according to Vice Mayor Cindy Allen.

“Moving to zero-waste is the ultimate goal, and we want to reduce emissions, as well as local and global harms every step of the way,” said Allen.

Keeping the plant operating will also give the city time to explore using the facility or the site to dispose of organic waste, Bob Dowell said. That requirement is the result of another state law, Assembly Bill 1383, which requires cities to dispose of organic waste without dumping it in landfills, where it generates methane, a greenhouse gas.

“The regional plans are primarily focused on complying with 1383, so trying to get the organics diversion is a huge focus; and that’s going to take place over time,” said Dowell.

City officials have been working for several months to prepare a request for proposals to use the site and/or the plant for organic waste disposal. Dowell says he hopes to release the request for proposals in February or March and have a decision on a direction by midyear.