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A Win for the Latham’s Snipe in Australia T
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ith Santa Monica Baykeeper leading the charge, a coalition of local community organizations, elected officials and concerned citizens successfully placed enough pressure on Woodside Natural Gas to spur the company to withdraw plans for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project. “Woodside’s decision to stop trying to build an LNG project off our coast is great news for the environment and for all Los Angeles residents,” said Tom Ford, executive director of Santa Monica Bay-
keeper. “The project was never welcome in Santa Monica Bay, and this is my version of a perfect ending, saying goodbye and good riddance.” Woodside’s proposed offshore location is 27 miles off the coast of Southern California and in the vicinity of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). The project would have imported LNG (a fossil fuel) on massive tankers to be transferred to underground pipelines at the site. “Having an off-shore LNG project near LAX … was never a good idea,” said Congresswoman
Jane Harman. “I’m relieved that we will no longer have to worry about having a security and environmental threat in our backyard.” “This is a victory for renewable energy,” said Diane Moss, a local community activist and coalition member. “Now we can focus on investing in a greener future without relying solely on fossil fuels.”
SOUTH BEACH WETLANDSKEEPER
he Latham’s Snipe is a species of longbilled wader, and the subject of migratory bird agreements among Australia, China and Japan. Over the past 30 to 40 years, 20 wetlands in and around Port Fairy, in western Victoria, have been drained, grazed, filled and built over, or converted into ornamental wetlands, driving the Snipe away. The Powling Street Wetlands remain the only freshwater wetlands in Port Fairy, offering refuge to the Snipe. The Wetlands and surrounding area support the largest known concentration of Latham’s Snipe in Victoria, and possibly in all of Australia South Beach Wetlandskeeper Don Stewart challenged a proposed 43-lot subdivision near the Powling Street Wetlands. The proposal was subsequently defeated in the Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT), effectively guaranteeing protection for this significant bird population and its habitat. The Tribunal ordered that a permit not be issued for the development, as there were “significant environmental and physical issues with the subdivision.” Even the developer’s environmental expert concurred that the land proposed for subdivision was a critical habitat for the Latham’s Snipe. “We are very pleased that VCAT has refused the permit,” Stewart said. “The council now has the opportunity to recognize this nationally significant site and ensure it is properly protected for the community.”
Santa Monica Baykeeper Defeats LNG Project
Don Stewart, South Beach Wetlandskeeper (third from left), with members of his organization at the Powling Street Wetlands, the last area in Port Fairy where the Latham’s Snipe still thrives. 20
Waterkeeper Magazine Summer 2009
Importing natural gas is a lot more complex, expensive and dangerous than importing crude oil, because the gas must be chilled to minus 260 degrees and carried in specially built tankers under high pressure, then warmed again before it can be distributed. www.waterkeeper.org
