Long Beach energy project halted

After four years of scrutiny, Long Beach officials Monday pulled the plug on a controversial energy project that promised an abundant new source of clean-burning liquefied natural gas for California but posed insurmountable safety concerns.

In a unanimous vote, the Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners decided to end an environmental review of the project that was launched more than two years ago but had slipped far behind schedule. The action effectively terminates the effort by the port and a partnership of Mitsubishi Corp. and ConocoPhillips to build a $700-million liquefied natural gas plant inside the busiest cargo port in the nation.

"The project is dead," said Doris Topsy-Elvord, a commissioner and former Long Beach councilwoman. "It's been a long haul, we've worked hard at it, but it is at a standstill. I do not think there's a possibility it will come back," she said.

The project has roiled the community while underscoring the challenges in providing fuel for rapidly growing California.

Liquefied natural gas terminals have been favored by the Bush administration and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger as a way to bring fuel from overseas as North American sources diminish. Air quality officials and some environmentalists also favor LNG because it generally burns cleaner than other fuels, helping to alleviate smog.

But others expressed misgivings about the Long Beach project, called Sound Energy Solutions, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), the state Public Utilities Commission, the California Energy Commission, the California Coastal Commission, members of the Long Beach City Council and neighborhood groups.

"This is very good news for the people of Long Beach," said Bry Myown of Long Beach Citizens for Utility Reform. "This was just a bad project."

Specifically, opponents raised safety concerns, citing the potential for a catastrophic natural gas explosion that could kill hundreds of people and devastate much of the Long Beach waterfront.

"This project would have put over 140,000 people who live and work within 3 miles of that LNG terminal at risk," said Harvey Morris, an attorney for the Public Utilities Commission. "The evidence was overwhelming there's all kinds of things that could go wrong if there was a terror attack or earthquake. There's a need for LNG, but there are much safer alternatives."