OPPOSING VIEW OF WALKER INITIATIVE

To the Editor:

A series of incidents in the past year and a half at the Mobil Oil Refinery in Torrance have raised serious issues with the Torrance City Council as to the safe operation of that facility and to the potential threat to the health and safety of the people of this community.

Substantial effort and financial resources have been expended to evaluate the refinery operation, the storage and handling of acutely hazardous substances at the refinery, and the risk involved in continued operation under current conditions.

This evaluation has been done at great expense to the city by the best technical, scientific and legal experts available, and with the concurrence of the entire City Council.

Based upon these findings, on April 7, 1989, the city of Torrance filed suit against Mobil Oil Corp. in Superior Court in Los Angeles. The suit cites the potential for a catastrophic occurrence in the event of a major release of any of a number of acutely hazardous substances, including hydrofluoric acid, hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, chlorine and ammonia, and asks for an order of abatement and a permanent injunction.

The city has made a major and bold commitment to the health and safety of the community.

In spite of the fact that he was privy to and in agreement with each council decision, one City Council member, Dan Walker, secretly plotted to capitalize politically on the community’s fears.

Funded by a political war chest unprecedented in Torrance history and with the assistance of a professional political consultant, Mr. Walker flooded Torrance residents with a slick brochure and the “Dan Walker Initiative.”

Since he had inside information on when the city’s lawsuit would be filed, he carefully timed release of his mailing (for) two days before the court filing.

It is important for Torrance residents to know that this action is not endorsed by the City Council, but is the political action of just one person.

It is important to know that this initiative deals with just one acutely hazardous substance, hydrofluoric acid, and leaves unaddressed other acutely hazardous substances that have been the source of health-threatening emissions and have the potential for catastrophic events.

It is important to know that if the required number of signatures are gathered, the City Council is required to call a special election at an estimated cost of $115,000, or to adopt an ordinance, regardless of the legal and monetary consequences.

It is important to know that if adopted, this initiative could subject the city to extended and enormously expensive litigation.

Public safety is much too serious a matter to be dealt with through questionable political tactics designed to benefit a single individual.

We urge you to reject the “Dan Walker Initiative” and to reject big city politics in the city of Torrance.

Respectfully submitted,

Katy Geissert, Mayor

Bill Applegate, Councilman

Dee Hardison, Councilwoman

Timothy Mack, Councilman

George Nakano, Councilman

Mark Wirth, Councilman