Officials worry about seaweed entering PREPA plants
- The San Juan Daily Star
- 23 hours ago
- 2 min read
By The Star Staff
Víctor Parés Otero, the chairman of the Government Committee in the island House of Representatives, recently met with Energy Czar Josué Colón Ortiz to discuss the measures being implemented by Genera Puerto Rico to prevent seaweed from entering the cooling systems of the San Juan, Palo Seco and Aguirre power plants.
During the conversation, Parés also spoke with Iván Báez, vice president of government and public affairs for Genera. Báez said the private operator of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s (PREPA) legacy generation fleet is exploring the installation of boom systems to block sargassum from entering critical areas.
“Sargassum blooms are common in Puerto Rico each year, but this time they are more severe than in previous years,” Parés noted. “While people typically associate this phenomenon with beaches and resorts, it’s important to note that sargassum can drift as far north as the metropolitan area near Levittown, potentially affecting the pumping systems of the San Juan and Palo Seco plants. It can also reach Salinas and the Aguirre power plant, which previously experienced issues related to sargassum.”
Last Friday, sargassum was observed near San Juan Bay and on Condado Beach.
At the end of September 2021, more than 100,000 customers lost power when unit number 1 of the Aguirre Combined Cycle Power Plant in Salinas went offline due to a “sargassum flood.” According to a report by PREPA, the algae clogged the plant’s filters and pipes, leading to the shutdown.
“In the past, we’ve encountered problems with sargassum entering pipes and pumping systems. Our goal is to prevent a recurrence of what happened four years ago,” the San Juan District 4 lawmaker said. “That’s why we discussed this issue with the energy czar, who is aware of the potential problem. We also consulted with the vice president of government affairs at Genera, who understands the damage that sargassum intrusion could cause to power generation systems and has developed a plan to address it.”