Substation

PG&E are proposing to develop a 10-acre electrical substation on the corner of Watsonville Road and Uvas Road in Morgan Hill. This development, known as Watsonville-B, is a key vista for the South Valley Wine Trail and will severely impact the rural beauty both residents and wineries alike work hard to maintain. There will be no disguising this fenced in, brightly lit, industrial compound which will no doubt repel tourists, visitors and residents from this world class wine producing area. This charming landscape will be transformed into an industrial complex. Your property value will suffer.

PG&E's plans along with proposed site maps can be found here

Fire Danger

Beyond the irreparable damage to the environment, there will be an increased fire danger in a zone already designated as a High Fire Danger zone. This recent CAL Fire Report illustrates a worrying 25% of the top 20 destructive fires in California were caused by electrical faults.

Uninvited attention

Yet more disturbing is the attraction the substation would hold for vandals and even organized attacks as witnessed at the Metcalf facility in Coyote Ranch Road, San Jose: Metcalf Substation Sniper Attack. Electrical substations appear to be a common target for nefarious activity. If the more obvious locations such as Metcalf can't be adequately protected then a rural site such as Watsonville Road would make an easy target.

Sign the petition

There are several other locations available to PG&E that do not pose these environmental problems and are located closer to the existing substation at Main Avenue. PG&E's plans for the development will be submitted to the California Public Utilities Commission in early to mid-2017. Please add your name to this petition and tell others that may be affected by PG&E's proposal. We need to speak loud, clear and often to PG&E so that our collective voice can be heard and have them reconsider more appropriate locations other than Watsonville-B.