Great minds think alike. In 2005 and 2006 when the Airport Authority was thinking about the Mag-Lev high speed train to Imperial Valley, we asked the Airport Authority to analyze the joint use the existing 500 kilovolt Southwest Power Link (SWPL) corridor owned by SDG&E located on the International Border with Mexico. link Our plans for everyone to save money and protect the desert included building three construction projects at the same time: 1. Add an additional parallel 500 kilovolt line or replace the existing transmission line with a 1,000 kilovolt Ultra High Voltage (UHV) lines like they use in China; 2. Build the border fence using the existing SDG&E maintenance roads along the border; 3. Build the Mag-Lev train to Imperial Valley in_the same Utility Easement. The SWPL alternative was excluded early on_in_the process without explanation or written analysis.

Posted by La Playa Heritage | reply to this comment
April 12, 2008 7:23 pm

Ahh, So True! Dick Cheney's energy task force was an effort to let the federal government assist energy companies with whatever they needed. In particular, the secret they tried to keep under wraps was the plan to get the federal government to override the local or regional citizenry when they reject bad ideas such as the Sunrise Powerlink. So here we have the Sempra folks chatting in the backroom with the feds about how to cry terror regarding the Sunrise Powerlink, saying the extension cord is a matter of national security. What a scam! Just like the artificially made up energy crisis.

Posted by Christopher Hall | reply to this comment
April 12, 2008 9:49 pm

• Users may post more than one comment, but should not pose as multiple users. Multiple posts from the same IP address but with a different user name on each will be reviewed to determine whether abuse has occurred.
• Posts with overly personal attacks or unsubstantiated allegations may be edited or deleted.
• Please be patient with the posts -- there may be a delay before they appear on the site -- and make sure to enter the code in the "image verification" box.