11th Hour Call To Action Brings Focus On San Onofre Nuclear Waste

LAGUNA BEACH, CA —On Veteran's Day, Laguna Beach residents banded together not just for honoring our heroes, but to march in an 11th Hour Call To Action to halt the loading of Holtec thin-wall canisters at San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station.

"The San Onofre nuclear waste is the big issue," she said. "The loading of canisters must be stopped and investigated."

Leeds is no stranger to community activism. In 1989, residents of Laguna Beach showed their solidarity against a housing project that would have forever changed the Orange County coastal area, thanks to an idea by Beth Leeds. Ten thousand walked to Save Laguna Canyon in September of 1989, Leeds wrote on Patch.

"The Laguna Beach City Council approved it, and the rest was history!" she said. "(We) walked from Main Beach Park to Sycamore Flats, and Laguna Canyon was saved from 3,500 housing units, eight stoplights, gas stations, golf courses, and high-end malls."

Leeds is not alone in wanting the work at SONGS halted and investigated. A lawsuit filed in August attempted to insist on alternate courses of action for the decommissioning of the plant.

"In October, the California Coastal Commission unanimously approved a coastal development permit for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, according to a SONGS spokesperson on their website. That move cleared the way for the "dismantlement of plant structures and decontamination of the site," according to release.

"We appreciate the commissioners for their diligence in understanding the issues involved and Coastal Commission staff for their efforts in making sure all voices were heard in the process," Doug Bauder, SCE vice president, and chief nuclear officer said.

The approval by the Coastal Commission allows SCE to move forward with removing above-grade structures on the site, such as the twin containment domes. SCE anticipates beginning major decommissioning work in 2020.
Leeds has worked to save Main Beach, the historic Laguna Beach Lifeguard Tower, and other open space.