We, the undersigned, are in strong opposition to Woodside Petroleum's proposed "OceanWay" Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project directly offshore from LAX. We believe this deeply flawed project should be terminated for the following critically important reasons: 1) It increases the size of the bull's eye on LAX's back -- LAX is the world's fifth busiest airport and twice the target of earlier al Qaeda-inspired attacks; 2) It hobbles California's ability to comply with state law requiring 20% of electricity to come from renewable energy sources by 2010, and state policy to increase that amount to 33% by 2020; 3) Like coal and oil, LNG is a fossil fuel that pollutes heavily and contributes to greenhouse gases and global warming. Several studies conclude that, over its lifecycle, imported LNG emits almost as much greenhouse gas as burning coal, and it produces 25% more greenhouse gas than domestically produced natural gas; 4) It makes no economic sense. LNG's prices have consistently been higher than domestic natural gas over the past ten years, have tripled in the past five years, and are predicted even by Woodside's president to continue to skyrocket due to shortage of supplies and labor and an extremely competitive market in Asia and Europe. The jobs created by the project for local workers will be minimal. At least 80% of the short term construction jobs for the project will come from outside the region, and in the long term, the delivery ships will be manned by foreign crews. 5) There are no clear indications that California will need increased natural gas supplies in the foreseeable future. State reports show our supplies are plentiful, that the trend in California has been toward lessening natural gas demand, and state mandates for curbing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing efficiency and renewables are likely to perpetuate this trend. Additionally, US natural gas supplies recently hit a 20 year high; 6) The project poses a threat to wildlife, including endangered whale and butterfly species, mariners, and others who use Santa Monica Bay, not to mention life in other parts of the world where the gas is extracted and processed. Many countries that export LNG have a low standard of environmental oversight; 7) The project will run pipelines through some of the most underserved communities in Los Angeles, including within 1400 feet of 21 schools. These communities will have to bear the brunt of pipeline safety risks, construction nuisances including noise and drilling through driveways, and traffic. East wind of the project, they will also most likely get some of the worst of the pollution; 8) The project will make us all the more dependent on foreign energy. LNG supplies often come from places that are politically unstable and in conflict with the United States, such as Qatar, Russia, and Indonesia; 9)The project presents safety risks. For example, it is proposed for an extreme seismic area, and there are no safety standards for LNG deepwater ports built in seismic zones. Even Woodside admits that this poses a risk.; 10) The project poses a disproporionate burden on a region of Los Angeles County that is already saddled with many industrial projects. In short, Woodside's LNG project is not the future we want. OceanWay is the Wrong Way.

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