Part 2: Lithium gold rush in Imperial Valley
GOOD MORNING, I’M JOHN CARROLL IN FOR DEBBIE CRUZ….IT’S FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14TH.
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RESIDENTS OF IMPERIAL COUNTY ARE HOPING FOR A LITHIUM GOLD RUSH.
MORE ON THAT NEXT. BUT FIRST... LET’S DO THE HEADLINES….
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HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE PREDICTING A MUCH WORSE FLU SEASON THAN LAST YEAR … AND SO FAR, IT'S TAKING ITS TOLL ON SCHOOLS ACROSS THE COUNTY.
HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS ARE OUT SICK RIGHT NOW AT PATRICK HENRY AND DEL NORTE HIGH SCHOOLS ALONE.
SAN DIEGO COUNTY HEALTH OFFICIALS SAY MANY STUDENTS MAY BE SICK BECAUSE OF A MIXTURE OF A BAD FLU SEASON... AND OTHER ILLNESSES.
HEALTH OFFICIALS ARE URGING SAN DIEGANS TO GET THEIR FLU SHOTS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.
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VIOLENT CRIMES IN THE SAN DIEGO REGION WERE UP DURING THE FIRST HALF OF THE YEAR COMPARED TO LAST YEAR… BUT PROPERTY CRIMES WERE DOWN.
THAT’S ACCORDING TO A REPORT RELEASED YESTERDAY BY SANDAG.
THE REPORT FOUND THE NUMBER OF REPORTED HOMICIDES INCREASED BY FOUR-PERCENT AND ROBBERIES INCREASED 15-PERCENT RESPECTIVELY COMPARED TO LAST YEAR.
THE NUMBER OF REPORTED RAPES AND AGGRAVATED ASSAULTS DECREASED DURING THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF THE YEAR…
BUT THEY WERE THE SECOND HIGHEST NUMBER REPORTED SINCE 20-12.
PROPERTY CRIME RATES WERE TWO-PERCENT LOWER COMPARED TO LAST YEAR.
MORE THAN 26-THOUSAND PROPERTY CRIMES WERE REPORTED BETWEEN JANUARY AND JUNE.
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IT'S ALL TIED UP AS THE PADRES PREPARE FOR GAME THREE OF THE NATIONAL LEAGUE DIVISION SERIES AT PETCO PARK TODAY.
JAKE CRONENWORTH AND MANNY MACHADO LED THE FIVE-TO-THREE WIN FOR THE PADRES IN GAME TWO AGAINST THE L-A DODGERS WEDNESDAY.
THEY BOTH HIT SOLO HOME RUNS.
GAME THREE WILL BE PLAYED AT PETCO PARK… HOSTING ITS FIRST SAN DIEGO PADRES POSTSEASON SERIES IN 16 YEARS.
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FROM KPBS, YOU’RE LISTENING TO SAN DIEGO NEWS NOW.
STAY WITH ME FOR MORE OF THE LOCAL NEWS YOU NEED.
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THE FUTURE OF ELECTRIC CARS HAS CREATED AN ENORMOUS DEMAND FOR LITHIUM, AND IMPERIAL COUNTY IS RICH IN DEPOSITS.
COMPANIES ARE PREPARED TO MINE THE METAL, SUSPENDED IN SALTY UNDERGROUND WATER.
BUT WHO WILL REAP THE FINANCIAL REWARDS?
KPBS SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY REPORTER THOMAS FUDGE HAS THIS SECOND STORY IN A TWO-PART SERIES.
Maria Nava Froelich is a forty-year employee of the Calipatria school district. She is also the Mayor Pro Tem of Calipatria. And she tells me there is a lot that is missing from her town. “Visit our communities and see for yourself how rural and how impoverished we are. We want to thrive like other municipalities, like other communities.” The realities of high unemployment, lack of retail businesses and few career opportunities are as stifling here as the triple digit temperatures. Some, like Luis Olmedo, executive director of the Comite Civico del Valle, say distribution of what money there is, has not been equitable. “Every time there’s an opportunity, we’ve been exploited.We’re going to pull together because if we don’t work together in unity, every interested party that sees a financial opportunity is going to tear us apart. And we’re going to end up with nothing but extraction, and no benefits in our own community.” The extraction he’s talking about is the future mining of heavy deposits of lithium, which is suspended in underground brine water. And this time the wheels of politics have guaranteed that some money will remain in the Imperial Valley, and hopefully benefit many of the people who need it. State Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia, a Democrat who represents Imperial County, was behind a bill signed by Governor Newsom. It will levy an excise tax on every ton of lithium that is recovered in the valley. And every penny of tax revenue is staying in the valley. “Eighty percent will go to the county for purposes of reinvestment into the community. Thirty percent of the 80 percent will be directed to communities closest to the lithium recovery activities.” The remaining 20 percent will go to Salton Sea restoration. The county board of supervisors will have to decide what reinvestment initiatives deserve funding. Garcia says officials have raised the question at community meetings. “We heard from community residents that if you live in the North End, there are issues related to water and sewer infrastructure. We’ve heard from community members that they’re looking for investments that will lead to economic development opportunities. There’s a town on the North End that doesn’t have a grocery store.” Imperial County is one of the poorest counties in California, where unemployment rates have historically hovered above 20 percent. The excise tax that will be levied on lithium extractions will ultimately reach 800 dollars a ton. Industry is not happy about it. David Spomer is the CEO of EnergySource. They are planning to build a billion dollar expansion to their geothermal plant to begin extracting lithium in 2025. “When the governor’s office indicated they were going to support this industry, we were thankful. That’s great. But the first thing that happened is they put a $800 a ton lithium tax on us. And I was kind of shocked that was how they were going to help this industry take off.” But Spomer says they’ve come to terms with the tax, and Mayor Nava Froelich is very upbeat. Calling the lithium industry a “game changer” for the valley. In a related development, San Diego State University received an $80 million check from the state to build a STEM research and education facility at its Imperial Valley campus in Brawley. San Diego State president Adela de la Torre spoke at a recent community forum in Brawley, and offered this bright vision for the future. “It’s a moment where the stars have aligned if you will, so that we can create a vision that allows our students to stay in the valley, have opportunities in the valley, and become the leader in the valley in so many different ways.” Spomer, with EnergySource, says he welcomes the training offered by San Diego State and Imperial Valley College. He says it’s important to recruit trained people who are from the valley because outsiders who move here don’t typically last very long.
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YESTERDAY MORNING WORK CREWS AND TOP STATE OFFICIALS GATHERED IN POWAY, WHERE WORK BEGAN INSTALLING A FIBER OPTIC CABLE TO PROVIDE BROADBAND INTERNET THROUGHOUT THE STATE.
THE UNDERGROUND CABLE WILL EVENTUALLY BE 10-THOUSAND MILES LONG.
IT WILL RUN THROUGH RURAL AND URBAN PLACES IN A STATE WHERE ONE OUT OF FIVE PEOPLE DON’T HAVE BROADBAND ACCESS.
STATE SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION TOKS OMISHAKIN HAS A LIST OF THINGS THAT START WITH ‘E’ THAT PEOPLE HAVE TO FIND ONLINE.
“There are some E’s we like to talk about to make this, sort of drive this home for what it’s going to do for people. From an economic standpoint. From an equity standpoint. From an employment standpoint. Even emergency and healthcare, this is going to mean access.”
THE BROADBAND CABLE WILL COST 3-POINT-8 BILLION DOLLARS, MUCH OF IT FEDERALLY FUNDED, AND IT MUST BE COMPLETED BY 20-26.
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PARENTS PROTESTED YESTERDAY OUTSIDE THE HEADQUARTERS OF THE SAN DIEGUITO UNION HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT…. RALLYING TO OPPOSE ANTISEMITISM.
LAST MONTH, A 7TH GRADE HISTORY TEACHER AT CARMEL VALLEY MIDDLE SCHOOL DISPLAYED A PICTURE OF ADOLPH HITLER ON A BULLETIN BOARD – ALONGSIDE HONORED HEROES LIKE MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. AND MAHATMA GHANDI.
DESPITE APOLOGIES FROM THE SCHOOL PRINCIPAL AND THE DISTRICT SUPERINTENDENT …PARENTS LIKE JONATHAN GALE SAY MORE HAS TO BE DONE TO CORRECT WHAT HAPPENED.
“THIS IS ROOTED IN A DEEP NEGATIVE BIAS AGAINST JEWISH PEOPLE…THAT’S POTENTIALLY PRIMING THE PUMP FOR A LOT OF KIDS TO QUESTION THE LEGITIMACY OR THE REALITY THAT THE HOLOCAUST WAS.”
INTERIM SUPERINTENDENT TINA DOUGLAS HAS SAID DISTRICT OFFICIALS WILL MEET WITH JEWISH COMMUNITY LEADERS FOR WHAT SHE CALLS A ‘LISTENING SESSION.’
DOUGLAS ALSO COMMITTED TO ADDITIONAL ANTI-BIAS TRAINING FOR ALL FACULTY AND STAFF.
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COMING UP.... WE HAVE SOME WEEKEND ARTS EVENTS WORTH CHECKING OUT. WE’LL HAVE THAT AND MORE, JUST AFTER THE BREAK.
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NOW THAT EUROPE HAS REOPENED ITS DOORS TO TOURISM, MANY EAGER SOON-TO-BE TRAVELERS ARE PLANNING LONG-AWAITED VACATIONS ACROSS THE CONTINENT.
IF THIS DESCRIBES YOU, YOU MIGHT WANT TO CHECK OUT A NEW SIX-HOUR SERIES FROM RICK STEVES CALLED “ART OF EUROPE.”
THE SERIES STARTS WITH THE STONE AGE AND ANCIENT GREECE, AND FINISHES WITH THE MODERN AGE, TELLING STORIES ABOUT FAMOUS WORKS OF ART, THE ARTISTS THAT MADE THEM AND THE HISTORY THAT INSPIRED THEM.
KPBS REPORTER ANDREW BOWEN SPOKE WITH RICK STEVES ABOUT THE NEW SERIES, AND BEGAN BY ASKING HIM WHY HE WANTED TO FOCUS A SERIES ON THE ART OF EUROPE.
HERE’S THEIR CONVERSATION.
THAT WAS RICK STEVES. THE AUTHOR AND HOST OF “TRAVEL WITH RICK STEVES,” SPEAKING WITH KPBS REPORTER ANDREW BOWEN ABOUT HIS NEW UPCOMING SERIES “ART OF EUROPE” … WHICH DEBUTS TOMORROW ON K-P-B-S T-V AT 4 P-M.
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FOR THE FIFTH YEAR, THE LOCAL ARTS ORGANIZATION “WRITE OUT LOUD” HOSTS POEFEST… A CELEBRATION OF AUTHOR EDGAR ALLAN POE AND ALL THINGS MACABRE.
KPBS ARTS REPORTER BETH ACCOMANDO HAS THIS PREVIEW.
POEFEST BEARS THE NAME OF EDGAR ALLAN POE BECAUSE IT CELEBRATES THE MACABRE THEMES THAT HE MADE PERVERSELY ENTHRALLING. POE HIMSELF COMMENTED ON HIS LEGACY. TRAVIS RHETT WILSON [AS POE] IT HAS BEEN THE CASE THROUGHOUT HISTORY THAT HUMANS GROW FASCINATED, CURIOUS ABOUT MADNESS AND MENTAL FRAGILITY. THAT SAID, I OFFER THIS BIT OF CAUTION TO YOUNG READERS BE CAUTIOUS. WHEN YOU SEEK MADNESS, YOU JUST MAY FIND IT. OKAY, THAT’S NOT ACTUALLY THE AUTHOR BUT RATHER TRAVIS RHETT WILSON WHO CHANNELS POE AND PERFORMS THE RAVEN AT WRITE OUT LOUD’S IMMERSIVE POEFEST. YOU CAN ALSO MEET MARY SHELLEY AND SHAKESPEARE’S THE WEIRD SISTERS AS POEFEST RUNS THE NEXT THREE WEEKENDS AT THE VILLA MONTEZUMA MUSEUM. BETH ACCOMANDO, KPBS NEWS.
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AND BEFORE YOU GO…
WE HAVE SOME WEEKEND ARTS EVENTS WORTH CHECKING OUT, THANKS TO KPBS’S JULIA DIXON EVANS.
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THE MUSIC– THAT YOU’RE LISTENING TO– FROM THE OPERA "CARMEN" IS PROVOCATIVE, MOODY AND GLORIOUSLY SHOWBOATING.
THE OPERA “CARMEN” IS SET IN SPAIN, ABOUT A GYPSY NAMED CARMEN, AND A SOLDIER INVOLVED IN TRAGIC SEDUCTION AND JEALOUSY.
YOU CAN SEE THE PACIFIC LYRIC ASSOCIATION PRODUCTION THIS WEEKEND AT THE CALIFORNIA CENTER FOR THE ARTS IN ESCONDIDO.
THE OPERA STARTS AT SEVEN P-M TONIGHT AND TOMORROW, AND AT THREE P-M ON SUNDAY.
THERE WILL ALSO BE MORE PERFORMANCES OF THE PRODUCTION NEXT WEEKEND AT THE JOAN B. KROC THEATER.
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AND IF YOU’D LIKE TO CHECK OUT SOME VISUAL ART… THERE’S A NEW EXHIBITION CALLED “BESIDE HERSELF” NOW ON VIEW.
THE ART EXHIBITION BY ARTIST LANI EMANUEL IS A SERIES OF LARGE FIGURATIVE PAINTINGS THAT SHOW THE FORMATIVE YEARS OF A GIRL'S LIFE.. SHOWCASING JOY TO GRIEF, TO ANNOYANCE AND AWKWARDNESS.
IT’S ON VIEW THROUGH FEBRUARY 26TH NEXT YEAR AT THE OCEANSIDE MUSEUM OF ART.
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YOU CAN FIND MORE DETAILS ABOUT THE ARTS EVENTS MENTIONED, AND MORE, AT KPBS-DOT-ORG-SLASH-ARTS.
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THAT’S IT FOR THE PODCAST TODAY. THIS PODCAST WAS PRODUCED BY KPBS EDITOR JOE GUERIN AND PRODUCER EMILYN MOHEBBI. AS ALWAYS YOU CAN FIND MORE SAN DIEGO NEWS ONLINE AT KPBS DOT ORG. I’M JOHN CARROLL. THANKS FOR LISTENING AND HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND.
