El Toro Foes Criticize Fuel Pipeline System
El Toro airport opponents on Friday accused Orange County officials of painting a rosy picture of prospects for using existing pipelines to carry jet fuel to the former Marine base, although serious doubts were raised in a report last year.
“The fuel line has been a big issue all along,” said Meg Waters, spokeswoman for a coalition of eight south county cities opposed to building an international airport at El Toro.
Last month, the county’s draft environmental impact report advised against using trucks to transport jet fuel but said the county could obtain fuel by existing pipelines.
In its report, the county wrote: “The EIR analysis assumed that all fuel would be brought to Orange County International (OCX) by truck in order to ensure that all possible traffic impacts were identified. However, the Airport System Master Plan and the EIR recommend that the county obtain aviation fuel by two conveniently located, existing fuel pipelines.”
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