Mare Island Plan Fuels Grass-Roots Opposition
By Corey Lyons
Contra Costa Newspapers
Nov. 24, 2002
VALLEJO -- The city is swept up in an escalating clash over a proposal to build a liquefied natural gas terminal and power plant on Mare Island, a former naval shipyard that closed six years ago.
A grass-roots organization is mounting an aggressive campaign to stop the first-of-its-kind project on the West Coast, saying it poses far too many potential health and safety hazards.
The expanding group is going toe to toe with a pair of corporate titans that laud their joint energy complex as an economic windfall for a city poised for change.
Residents are sorting through competing fact sheets and doorstep mailers, directing them to Web sites that either promote the project or highlight its dangers.
Next month, a city subcommittee exploring health and safety issues will release its findings after a 90-day investigation.
The battle over the $1.5 billion plan comes as the growing city of 116,000 talks about a renaissance in which Vallejo would shed its gritty industrial reputation and cater to tourism and young families.
Community leaders are excited about the untapped potential of a former Navy town tucked between the San Pablo and San Francisco bays, with high-speed ferry service and affordable homes.
The city already plans to extend historic Georgia Street to the waterfront and revitalize a downtown long identified by its abandoned storefronts and rampant crime.
But the focus abruptly shifted May 3, when Mayor Anthony Intintoli made a startling public disclosure. He said the city had been in private negotiations with Royal Dutch/Shell Group and Bechtel Corp. to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) port and 1,500-megawatt power plant on Mare Island.
Four days later, the City Council voted unanimously to negotiate with the two firms exclusively, a meeting that drew about 200 people and kicked off an intense opposition movement.
Faced with growing concern, the City Council voted in August to suspend talks with Bechtel and Shell while the city conducts a three-month health and safety study. Bechtel and Shell agreed to fund the $250,000 study, with critics skeptical about whether the probe would remain independent.
The five-member committee, organized by Fire Chief Don Parker, is expected to release its findings in a 20- to 25-page report Dec. 17. "This isn't unlike other very large proposals for development," said Tom Tobin, a consultant hired by the city who serves as the project's study manager.
"It represents a substantial change for the community, with an increase in maritime activities and some increase of risks -- . On the other hand, it offers economic benefits.
"And what's difficult," he added, "is that it will never be a black-and-white issue. There's no line in the sand that says it has to be one way or the other."
The Vallejo waterfront faces Mare Island, a 3«-mile-long peninsula with sweeping views of the Carquinez Strait and San Pablo Bay.
The 5,200-acre island, known as the first naval station in the country when it was established in 1853, is a jewel of future mixed-use development plans. In March, Vallejo took possession of 2,000 acres.
Bechtel and Shell are proposing an "energy center" on the southeastern portion of the island, which would include an LNG port and a scaled-down 600- to 900-megawatt, gas-fired power plant.
The large companies say Mare Island is a perfect fit for such a project because of its protective harbor, deep waters, proximity to the state's main gas line and former industrial use.
Critics say the deep-pocketed firms are taking advantage of the city's poor history of social activism and perceived ignorance, trying to sway residents with slick cards and 60-second TV spots.
The rift keeps gaining momentum.
Supporters say the project would create up to 1,000 living-wage union construction jobs and 100 permanent jobs, while giving Vallejo its single largest investment ever.
About $1 billion would be subject to property taxes, company officials say, stuffing millions of dollars into city coffers to improve schools, parks and roads.
In addition, by 2010 the plant would supply about 17 percent of the natural gas supply expected in California, a state with an increasing thirst for the clean-burning fuel.
"What some people want is someone to come forward and say, 'If we do this, it's a bad idea.' Well, no one is telling us that," said city spokesman Mark Mazzaferro.
But critics, like the fledgling Vallejo Citizens for Planned Renewal, maintain that it's a terrible idea that threatens to shackle the city to a "dirty, unhealthy and blighted future."
In other words, they say, it's a squandered chance to set a new economic path for a city ripe for rebirth.
"We think this could be a great tourist destination, a gateway to the Napa Valley," said Elena Haskins Ducharme, a job developer at Hastings College of the Law, who rides the ferry to work in San Francisco. Ducharme and others warn that the complex would add "smog-producing" gases and tanker emissions to a county already suffering from the highest rate of respiratory diseases in the Bay Area.
Even worse, they argue, LNG has the potential to vaporize and ignite into a huge fire capable of burning people or buildings thousands of yards away.
Stephanie Gomes, who works for the forestry service on Mare Island, said the giant tankers used to transport LNG offer an attractive target for terrorists.
"They talk about their state-of-the-art engineering, with double-hulled ships. Well, you can't engineer for terrorism," said Gomes, a city newcomer who has actively opposed the project.
LNG, a colorless, odorless liquid, is a natural gas kept at ultra-cold temperatures. When it cools, it reduces to 1/600th of its original size, making it easier and cheaper to transport over long distances. The product is hauled in 900-foot ocean carriers, which would pass under the Golden Gate and San Rafael bridges to reach Mare Island.
Fears of huge fireballs and terrorist attacks are overblown, officials for Bechtel and Shell say.
"We all have a heightened sense about terrorism. But Shell, in particular, operates facilities like these all over the world, safely, without being targets of terrorists," said Alison Abbott, community relations manager for the two firms.
Abbott, who works out of a restored building on Georgia Street, said LNG carriers have an impeccable safety record with 40,000 ocean voyages and no loss of life.
In any case, the City Council ultimately will decide whether to proceed after hearing from the subcommittee.
If the project gets the green light, it would not begin operating until 2007 or 2008.
Contra Costa Newspapers
Nov. 24, 2002
VALLEJO -- The city is swept up in an escalating clash over a proposal to build a liquefied natural gas terminal and power plant on Mare Island, a former naval shipyard that closed six years ago.
A grass-roots organization is mounting an aggressive campaign to stop the first-of-its-kind project on the West Coast, saying it poses far too many potential health and safety hazards.
The expanding group is going toe to toe with a pair of corporate titans that laud their joint energy complex as an economic windfall for a city poised for change.
Residents are sorting through competing fact sheets and doorstep mailers, directing them to Web sites that either promote the project or highlight its dangers.
Next month, a city subcommittee exploring health and safety issues will release its findings after a 90-day investigation.
The battle over the $1.5 billion plan comes as the growing city of 116,000 talks about a renaissance in which Vallejo would shed its gritty industrial reputation and cater to tourism and young families.
Community leaders are excited about the untapped potential of a former Navy town tucked between the San Pablo and San Francisco bays, with high-speed ferry service and affordable homes.
The city already plans to extend historic Georgia Street to the waterfront and revitalize a downtown long identified by its abandoned storefronts and rampant crime.
But the focus abruptly shifted May 3, when Mayor Anthony Intintoli made a startling public disclosure. He said the city had been in private negotiations with Royal Dutch/Shell Group and Bechtel Corp. to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) port and 1,500-megawatt power plant on Mare Island.
Four days later, the City Council voted unanimously to negotiate with the two firms exclusively, a meeting that drew about 200 people and kicked off an intense opposition movement.
Faced with growing concern, the City Council voted in August to suspend talks with Bechtel and Shell while the city conducts a three-month health and safety study. Bechtel and Shell agreed to fund the $250,000 study, with critics skeptical about whether the probe would remain independent.
The five-member committee, organized by Fire Chief Don Parker, is expected to release its findings in a 20- to 25-page report Dec. 17. "This isn't unlike other very large proposals for development," said Tom Tobin, a consultant hired by the city who serves as the project's study manager.
"It represents a substantial change for the community, with an increase in maritime activities and some increase of risks -- . On the other hand, it offers economic benefits.
"And what's difficult," he added, "is that it will never be a black-and-white issue. There's no line in the sand that says it has to be one way or the other."
The Vallejo waterfront faces Mare Island, a 3«-mile-long peninsula with sweeping views of the Carquinez Strait and San Pablo Bay.
The 5,200-acre island, known as the first naval station in the country when it was established in 1853, is a jewel of future mixed-use development plans. In March, Vallejo took possession of 2,000 acres.
Bechtel and Shell are proposing an "energy center" on the southeastern portion of the island, which would include an LNG port and a scaled-down 600- to 900-megawatt, gas-fired power plant.
The large companies say Mare Island is a perfect fit for such a project because of its protective harbor, deep waters, proximity to the state's main gas line and former industrial use.
Critics say the deep-pocketed firms are taking advantage of the city's poor history of social activism and perceived ignorance, trying to sway residents with slick cards and 60-second TV spots.
The rift keeps gaining momentum.
Supporters say the project would create up to 1,000 living-wage union construction jobs and 100 permanent jobs, while giving Vallejo its single largest investment ever.
About $1 billion would be subject to property taxes, company officials say, stuffing millions of dollars into city coffers to improve schools, parks and roads.
In addition, by 2010 the plant would supply about 17 percent of the natural gas supply expected in California, a state with an increasing thirst for the clean-burning fuel.
"What some people want is someone to come forward and say, 'If we do this, it's a bad idea.' Well, no one is telling us that," said city spokesman Mark Mazzaferro.
But critics, like the fledgling Vallejo Citizens for Planned Renewal, maintain that it's a terrible idea that threatens to shackle the city to a "dirty, unhealthy and blighted future."
In other words, they say, it's a squandered chance to set a new economic path for a city ripe for rebirth.
"We think this could be a great tourist destination, a gateway to the Napa Valley," said Elena Haskins Ducharme, a job developer at Hastings College of the Law, who rides the ferry to work in San Francisco. Ducharme and others warn that the complex would add "smog-producing" gases and tanker emissions to a county already suffering from the highest rate of respiratory diseases in the Bay Area.
Even worse, they argue, LNG has the potential to vaporize and ignite into a huge fire capable of burning people or buildings thousands of yards away.
Stephanie Gomes, who works for the forestry service on Mare Island, said the giant tankers used to transport LNG offer an attractive target for terrorists.
"They talk about their state-of-the-art engineering, with double-hulled ships. Well, you can't engineer for terrorism," said Gomes, a city newcomer who has actively opposed the project.
LNG, a colorless, odorless liquid, is a natural gas kept at ultra-cold temperatures. When it cools, it reduces to 1/600th of its original size, making it easier and cheaper to transport over long distances. The product is hauled in 900-foot ocean carriers, which would pass under the Golden Gate and San Rafael bridges to reach Mare Island.
Fears of huge fireballs and terrorist attacks are overblown, officials for Bechtel and Shell say.
"We all have a heightened sense about terrorism. But Shell, in particular, operates facilities like these all over the world, safely, without being targets of terrorists," said Alison Abbott, community relations manager for the two firms.
Abbott, who works out of a restored building on Georgia Street, said LNG carriers have an impeccable safety record with 40,000 ocean voyages and no loss of life.
In any case, the City Council ultimately will decide whether to proceed after hearing from the subcommittee.
If the project gets the green light, it would not begin operating until 2007 or 2008.
posted by Corey at 9:50 AM
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