TEP

Desert Logic: Water Theft Is Fine, If You’re Local

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If you thought Arizona had learned anything from our state’s last water scandal, think again. Pima County just sold off 290 acres of public land near the Fairgrounds for a $3.6 billion data center project. Yep, in a 3–2 vote on June 17, the Board of Supervisors approved a deal with Project Blue, a San … Read more

How to Vote on Arizona’s 8 Key Ballot Measures

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Print this out for future reference. Mail-in ballots will arrive on Oct. 10
Print this out for future reference. Mail-in ballots will arrive on Oct. 10

Faced with a corrupt State Legislature and Supreme Court, Arizona voters will have the chance to fight back on 8 public initiatives.

Teachers, elected representatives, and a transportation official explained the merits of the ballot initiatives at the recent
Tanque Verde Valley Democratic Club meeting.

Arrayed against voters are dark money interests and self-dealing corporations that are already spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to sabotage ballot initiatives to fund public schools, renewable energy, and clean elections.

“I said that this Legislature is owned by dirty money on the state House floor, and I was gaveled down,” says state Rep. Pamela Powers Hannley. “We still have corruption in the state government.”

Echoing these remarks, Luci Messing, the chair of the Tanque Verde Democrats, says, “We have a very corrupt majority in the Legislature who are not looking out for us. We need to take them out. That’s why it’s so important we vote for people who are pro-education, pro-family and will do best for Arizona and not for their pockets or personal gains. It’s definitely one of those issues where we can make a difference. The power is in our hands.”

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Plan to Modernize TEP Power Plant in Tucson will Produce More Air Pollution

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TEP's Sundt generating station on Irvington Road in Tucson.
TEP’s Sundt generating station on Irvington Road on Tucson’s south side.

Tucson Electric Power is proposing to modernize the Sundt Generating Station  at 4120 E Irvington Rd. in Tucson by replacing two 1950’s era steam units with 10 natural gas-fired combustion engines. The purpose of the new engines is to ramp up more quickly and to balance the variability associated with solar and wind energy generation. But all that ramping spouts more pollution into the air than the current steam units.

TEP claims that these units are part of a larger goal for 30% renewable energy by 2030, but gas-fired engines should not be equated with clean, renewable power from wind and solar. The Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engine (“RICE”) units are fossil-fuel based generating units that would create significant greenhouse gas emissions.

According to the Pima County Department of Environmental Quality, the project expects to cause an increase in emissions of carbon monoxide, particulate matter (fine particles PM2.5 and coarse particles PM10) and volatile organic compounds.

Over a third of carbon dioxide emissions in the US are from power plants.

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Activate Your Commute!

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“Work in downtown Tucson and want to know more about getting to and from your job using bus, bike, carpool or other alternative modes? Drop by the Activate Your Commute lunch-and-learn on Tuesday, Jan. 30, at the Joel D. Valdez Main Library between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. The event will include lots of door … Read more

Pima Council on Aging’s Art Auction 2015

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Carolyn’s note: Enjoy this eclectic art auction downtown on Friday the 13th of November. We’ve been to it in the past at various locations around town, and it is an amazing art event.