Row erupts at LNG hearings

I am beginning to think that building an LNG receiving terminal off the coast of Oxnard may be safer than attending a hearing over whether it should be built.

Critics of a floating liquefied natural gas terminal off the Ventura County coast outnumbered supporters Wednesday as state and federal officials concluded three days of public hearings in Oxnard.

At issue is BHP Billiton's Cabrillo Port terminal. Critics say the Australian mining firm's proposal would hurt air and water quality and marine wildlife, lower property values and threaten security by offering terrorists a ripe target.

Supporters, including business and labor leaders, and taxpayer advocates, counter the terminal would be safe, environmentally sound and a sorely needed remedy for state energy shortages.

The California State Lands Commission and Coast Guard conducted the hearings, taking public testimony on a draft environmental impact report released last month. Earlier this week, officials extended the public comment period on the report an extra two weeks to May 12.

The 971-foot long Cabrillo Port would sit 13.8 miles off the coast, accepting LNG from tankers — natural gas chilled to a liquid state — and then converting it back to a gaseous form.

A pair of underground pipelines would carry the gas to the Reliant Energy generating plant near Ormond Beach. Another pipe would then take it to a Southern California Gas Co. facility on Center Road in Somis.

More than 600 people jammed the Oxnard facility Wednesday night after another hearing that afternoon. Similar hearings were held in Santa Clarita on Monday and Malibu on Tuesday.

As part of the proposal, BHP Billiton would pay for an expanded pipeline in Santa Clarita to handle extra gas capacity. The Monday hearing drew 16 speakers, all but two supporting the proposal but offering "very little" comment on the EIR, said Dwight Sanders, chief of the State Lands Commission's environmental and planning division.

At a Malibu meeting Tuesday night, more than 300 people showed up and critics dominated the event, shouting down proponents and often interrupting them with boos, hisses and jeers. Some 60 people spoke, with critics outnumbering supporters by more than two to one.

At one point, Surlene Grant, the hearing's facilitator, warned the audience she would ask Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies to remove anyone who didn't cooperate.