Hey!! Does anyone care about the Malibu beaches?

Remember the clear view of Catalina, the beautiful sunsets on the beaches of Malibu. The legendary surf beaches with the gorgeous unobstructed views of the ocean. Well guess what?

The BHP Cabrillo project is going to turn your beach sunset into a view of ocean tanker traffic as they diesel up to their new 14 story high off shore transfer facility off the coast of Malibu, where the gas will be pumped via pipeline inland to storage facilities.

Somewhere in the hierarchy of politics and power, palms are being greased like shrimp on the barby. They are being greased by a company with a very large set of …….s

BHP Billiton an energy company out of Australia is talking like it’s a done deal. Like the palms have already been greased. They have coast guard, merchant marines, union and company representatives parading into public hearings on the project telling us its in our best interest and that they are our buddies. These set of suits think they can come here and destroy the vista of the most dynamic and beautiful beaches in Southern California and they’re talking like it’s a forgone conclusion.

LNG (liquid natural gas), is one of the latest up and coming energy sources in an energy hungry nation. This is what is driving the project. Make no mistake these guys are heavy hitters. We are talking about one of the big energy company players. AND I MEAN BIG. You know Mobile, Exon, Chevron, Texaco etc. all these faceless corporate behemoths who have gotten ahold of what they believe is another boon and boom …. LNG.

Safe? Safety is questionable. Of course these companies have all run their own safety assessments and have concluded that LNG is quite safe. However, there is talk of massive explosions and vapors being released into the air where they disperse invisibly into the atmosphere, hopefully without being ignited first. And fish life being destroyed by superheating the water. And bilge pumped from endless tanker ships docking day and night with the lit up offshore station (there goes the starry sky). And pollution; “The project cleared a major obstacle last year when the U.S. EPA classified the terminal as being outside the control of the Ventura County Air Pollution Control District. The location is 25 miles from Anacapa Island, which is part of the Channel Islands chain in Ventura County. Ventura County smog rules do not apply to the Channel Islands, meaning an LNG plant there would be able to emit more than 261 tons of pollutants per year (Greenwire, July 21, 2005).”

A Chevron/Texaco study summary states.… “The US market for natural gas is growing – Part of that demand will be met by LNG. The experience of the LNG industry suggests that hazards are manageable. 30+ years of experience with marine transport of LNG – no major failures carriers and cargo inherently safer than other hydrocarbon fuels transported by ship. Post September 11, 2001 – new risk not new hazard.”

Well, do you always believe your Doctor?

One of the only people who can stop this from happening is Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger. Our buddy Arnold seems to be in favor of LNG projects at this time.

American life, is about quality of life. What good is it to have more energy or money at the cost of quality of life. Its ultimately what we all want. All of us would like to, one day, be successful enough to buy a house with a view on or near the beach or our favorite natural vista. Its really the end game of the American dream. Even if we never get it, its nice to know that its there and within reach. Take away the dream that our hard work will lead to a better quality of life for ourselves and our family and you take away our motivation to be American.

So I put it to you. If you care about your quality of life. If you care about the quality of beach life and the views from the beach and hills near the beaches. If you still have an appreciation of nature. If you believe that nature is restorative to our lives and is integral to the quality of our lives. If you just like to get away from the city and see for a moment, a vista untouched by man. Then contact our governor and let him know that you don’t want the BHP Cabrillo project. Its that simple.

For more information see this informative article…