Offshore Terminal’s Onshore Effect Debated

Building a floating liquefied natural gas terminal 14 miles off the Ventura County coast may be safer than putting it on shore, but the proposed $800-million project has triggered intense opposition over its effect on air quality in smoggy Southern California.

About 12,000 coastal residents have filed comments, mostly in protest, about a draft air pollution permit the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is preparing for Australia-based BHP Billiton, one of the world’s largest energy companies.

Environmentalists say BHP’s project fails to meet Clean Air Act requirements because the EPA is not holding it to the rigorous standards that would apply if it were built on land. The EPA strongly advocated stringent controls for two years, then dropped its demand after intense lobbying from the company and the Bush administration, they said.

“It is being held to the lowest possible level of environmental review,” said Susan Jordan, director of the California Coastal Protection Network. “It sets a precedent for all the offshore LNG projects.”

LA Times