MAILBAG - Feb. 8, 2007

Wetlands groups unfair to AES

Kudos to Vic Leipzig for being honest enough to clue the public in on a fact that most of us were not aware of regarding the AES intake.

According to the “Natural Perspectives” column (“Fate of the AES power plant hangs in he balance,” Jan. 25), he has found documents that reveal that AES long ago installed a cap on its intake that “deters many fish from being sucked into the intake pipe. The actual amount of fish killed by the plant is estimated at eight pounds per day. Only eight pounds — the weight of one good-sized fish.”

Eight pounds of fish! And yet, for years the AES haters have been painting pictures of tons of fish mass-murdered daily, with their skeletal remains spit with disdain from our “evil” power plant’s outfall, as even more innocent schools of smiling fish are sucked into its bowels to be boiled alive — only to produce that most unnecessary of luxuries: electricity.

Of course, Mr. Leipzig warns, he must evaluate how much other marine life is killed, such as plankton (not quite an endangered organism in these parts) to see if his wetlands advocacy group still has a basis to extract fees from AES, but the headline in this story is that all the doom-sayers (and you all know who you are) have been lying to us! (Surprise, surprise!)

This column is written at about the same time as some meetings that are taking place regarding the future of AES and whether it should further modify its cooling loop, pay more “shakedown” cash (mitigation funds) to wetlands advocates (to fund their pet projects) or even be dismantled.

However, upon this revelation that much of the past mitigation fees paid have apparently been based upon faulty claims and assumptions, I submit that no further mitigation fees be paid at this point, and, in fact, I would hope that parties representing AES will look into whether a refund may be due from certain wetlands groups and their associates.

Tom Polkow

Huntington Beach

Parking matters to Main St. shoppers

Former Huntington Beach Mayor [Dave] Sullivan is right (“Main St. trial closure a waste of money,” Jan. 25). Trial closure is a waste. What he doesn’t tell you is that when Santa Monica first closed its street, it too was a failure.

A city employee (part of the original team) told me that the first closure resulted in the ruin of the downtown businesses. Closure simply went further than expected. It went to the storefronts, and the businesses’ decline created a blight. Specialists were consulted. They concluded that there was not enough convenient parking to attract people. So out came the wreckers, a new plan was drawn and eight parking facilities were provided within easy walking distance. Plan two worked.

We are headed for plan one, failure, for the same reason — lack of parking. And that’s the whole story.

Rod Kunishige

Huntington Beach

Decision poses risk for Poseidon plant

The Poseidon desalination plant is at risk with the recent decision of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers the East Coast.

The appellate court’s decision will undoubtedly have a bearing upon power plants on the West Coast as well. If once-through cooling for these 50 old plants is terminated, then Poseidon’s plan to piggyback on the AES plant’s once-through cooling would be denied, too.

Poseidon never took any responsibility for the marine life that was killed by the AES cooling method.

Since Huntington Beach was not buying any of the promised potable water from Poseidon, the city will be saved all the turmoil of our streets being dug up by Poseidon to get the water out of the city, our ocean will not be polluted by the effluent Poseidon was sending back to the AES plant after the salt was removed, and AES will not be there to put it back into the ocean. Our air will be cleaner and Huntington Beach will be the winner.

The majority of the City Council who voted for this boondoggle — Council members Cathy Green, Don Hansen, Keith Bohr and Gil Coerper — should take a hard look at their vote and learn from it. If a project does nothing for the city but hollow promises, then deny the project next time.

Eileen Murphy

Huntington Beach