Edison to Fight Noise Complaint

Southern California Edison, which has been a source of aggravation for homeowners near its Redondo Beach generating station over the last two years, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges that the utility violated the city’s noise ordinance.

Redondo Beach City Prosecutor John Slawson filed the charges against the utility last month, accusing Edison of allowing the noise level at the plant to exceed the city limit at least seven times during the month of September.

The charges carry a maximum penalty of $3,485.

Edison lawyer Brad Brian told South Bay Municipal Court Judge Sandra Thompson that the utility would challenge the validity of the city’s ordinance in a pretrial hearing set for Dec. 17. The last time the city prosecuted Edison for allegedly making too much noise, the city lost, partly because the court determined that the city’s noise measurements did not adequately distinguish the sounds generated by the plant from other sources of noise.

Slawson, however, has said that he is confident this time that sound measurements were carried out correctly.

Residents have complained for years about plant noise. Richard Gould, a neighbor and frequent critic of the station, recently said the constant, low-pitched hum emanating from the Edison plant “is like you have a dishwasher on your patio running all the time.”

Edison officials, however, say they are installing $2.5 million worth of acoustic housings, panels and other devices around loud equipment to mute the noise.