A natural gas terminal has been proposed by an Australian firm that would sit 22 miles south of Malibu.
Australia’s Woodside Energy, hoping to overcome environmental and safety concerns, is expected to unveil plans today to place a liquefied natural gas terminal in the Pacific Ocean about 22 miles south of Malibu.
It would be the latest of half a dozen proposals to meet California’s growing demand for clean-burning energy by importing liquefied natural gas. A debate over the safest way to handle the volatile fuel has dogged all of the projects.
The terminal would be little more that an a ship mooring with a connection to the Southern California Gas Company delivery network. Further, the mooring site would be located between Malibu and Catalina island and wouldn’t interfere with regular shipping.
The Malibu Times is pointing out some possible problems with another proposed LNG terminal,
A government re-examination of the liquefied natural gas terminal proposed for 13.8 miles off Malibu’s western coast predicts BHP Billiton’s Cabrillo Port “would result in both short- and long-term adverse impacts” to the coast and its residents that cannot possibly be mitigated.
Increased smog levels, the intrusion of a 14-story-high factory ship on Malibu’s coastal horizon, and the extremely remote possibility of a 14-mile-wide flash fire reaching to within seven miles of the city limits are among negative impacts that cannot be corrected or avoided, identified in the report.
Another concern was possible terrorism,
Much of the new analysis is based on comments from Malibu and Oxnard residents during public hearings in 2004. Some questions raised at those hearings, like the possibility of terrorists firing shoulder-mounted missiles at the gas ships, were raised for the first time by members of the public and evaluated in the second report.
The report avoids discussion of precise security measures based on national security grounds, but hints that armed patrol boats could be stationed next to Cabrillo Port: “The safety zone would be patrolled and would deter intruders in accordance with the security plan,” the report states. It says successful delivery of a missile “would be unlikely.”
