For Immediate Release
Monday, January 24, 2022
Media Contacts
Lucila Garcia, 323-646-2150 (English, Español)
Betsy López-Wagner, 708-717-9408
Stop Poseidon Coalition Statement on Poseidon Water Application to California Coastal Commission for Proposed Huntington Beach Desalination Plant
LOS ANGELES, CA (January 24, 2022) – The following is a statement from the Stop Poseidon coalition members, which include Azul, California Coastkeeper Alliance, California Coastal Protection Network, Orange County Coastkeeper and the Surfrider Foundation in response to the California Coastal Commission’s notification to Poseidon Water, which confirmed it submitted a completed permit application. A decision on permitting has not been made and is slated for March 10, 2022.
“The Stop Poseidon coalition stands at the ready to ensure our voices and the voices of our communities are heard against this proposed and unnecessary Brookfield Poseidon desalination plant in Huntington Beach. The commission must factor in environmental justice impacts and environmental degradation. In addition, it is absurd that Poseidon claims this project is in furtherance of the Human Right of Water. Privatized for-profit water is the most expensive and dirtiest of all methods and does not in any way fit the bill. This boondoggle must not be permitted.”
More recently, the Stop Poseidon coalition released a January 19 statement urging the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee (CDLAC) to reject all requested funding to Brookfield Poseidon, one of the world’s largest asset management firms — with global assets under management in excess of $650 billion — and for Poseidon to withdraw their application in reaction to CDLAC’s January hearing.
ABOUT STOP POSEIDON COALITION
Azul is a grassroots organization working with Latinxs to conserve coasts and oceans. It was founded in 2011 to bring Latinx perspectives and participation to ocean conservation and has long advocated for environmental justice and equity in the state of California, across the nation and at international levels.
California Coastkeeper Alliance represents watershed-focused California Waterkeepers as they fight for drinkable, swimmable, fishable waters for all Californians. It defends and expands California’s protective legislation and strengthens the function of our State Water Board.
California Coastal Protection Network (CCPN) works to uphold the core tenets of the California Coastal Act actively and effectively through policy, advocacy, and collaboration. We accomplish our mission by providing strong leadership to advance California’s 40-year legacy of coastal protection.
Orange County Coastkeeper works to protect and promote sustainable water resources that are swimmable, drinkable, and fishable for present and future generations. Orange County Coastkeeper is a member of the International Waterkeeper Alliance.
The Surfrider Foundation is dedicated to the protection and enjoyment of the world’s ocean, waves and beaches, for all people, through a powerful activist network.