If ever a case of mad scientists, this is it. AES previously owned and/or operated under another name, has been and continues to maintain an adversarial relationship with the City of Redondo Beach. Such as AES’s animosity and contempt for government, that its operator’s clearly have not only decided to illegally vent steam at ear shattering decibels (heard as far away as 3 miles), moreover the operators are also circumventing required plant maintenance by also regularly (apparently) dumping diesel fuel into the steam generator system’s steam turbine (which seems to be the source of huge black plumes of smoke from the plant’s stacks).
Presumably these ‘mad scientists’ are mitigating normal maintenance costs by intentionally over pressurizing the steam system in order to repeatedly cycle those release valve (rather then perform customary maintenance on them). This serves the ‘scientists’ apparent aim to not only save in maintenance costs, but more to the point, the noise and air quality violations serve as a slap in the face to the City (who has for years been embroiled in a lawsuit over the plant’s maintenance and operations).
Initially, tensions were inflamed over AES’s oceanic impact (coolant lines sucking in and killing off lobster and fish), then the law, environmentalists or plant ownership settled on at least sucking in marine life and supposedly returning it back live into the ocean.
As for how much shell fish and halibut might be easily be sidetracked to the dinner tables of some of those working at the plant, that has never been determined because of the secrecy surrounding supposed wildlife releases.
So that strong suspicion remains, especially since releases aren’t disclosed nor witnessed by the public. So what was the likely as not results from the oceanic wildlife issue, maybe just free perks for plant employees (with added benefit of live holding tanks).
As for how much wildlife was and still is sucking in the ocean seawater coolant lines and supposedly being set free, it’s hard to even estimate because assuming any of that was ever done, the occasional obligatory Fish and Wildlife Commissions participation seems likely to have been just that, obligatory and likely minimal at best (such as the track record for most Government beaurocracies).
As such, one wonders if and when the aquarium gets shutdown, or if its just turned over to a non-profit organization, how much of the trapped marine life will ever have been returned to the sea (with or without water torturing holding tanks). In any case, be assured of the plant’s disinterest.
With regards to air & noise pollution alone, that too seems to have be yet another bones of contention that the City feigns little to no involvement in either fielding public complaints nor even the atrocity of the monstrously ugliness of the outdated and unused buildings that are spread about what amounts to some 30% of the City’s harbor property.
What with apparently completely ignored noise and smog pollutions, it was odd that some years ago, the plant’s asbestos laden smoke stacks were in reportedly forcibly removed, apparently again under threat of fines or plant closure.
The plot thickens as seemingly the ‘scientists’ have become increasingly madder. Plant emissions of iron and other particulates for which residents used to be compensated for by small payments (10$ month) to those residents who were aware of the settlement and who somehow discovered how to contact the ownership in order to obtain even that remuneration, the plant decided to exacerbate the process under the guise of it’s cost effectiveness by contracting a company to do the cleanup, stain removal and other maintenance stemming from rust spots and soot accumulations.
But there too, the plant seems to have discontinued that, no doubt due to the likelihood that nobody could now afford an attorney to force remuneration.
There yet again, the City seems negligent by distancing itself from involvement and otherwise basically shirks any responsibility at every turn (unenforced zoning laws for noise, pollution and/or public nuisances) as this avoids costly litigation.
As such, it seems the City and all other government offices are ignoring public complaints about noise and air pollution (the City reportedly claiming they cannot afford to purchase and maintain so much as even a sound measuring device).
Nor does the City appear worried that it’s disinterest in monitoring or even fielding complaints of disturbing the peace, filthy cancer causing black smoke and speckles of rust spots that stain nearly everything in the area. And this despite countless calls to the police department, letters and emails to the City offices, all apparently going unanswered and otherwise never properly responded to.
Even the City’s reported interest in regaining the largely unused property AES, has met with an impasse as now for years, since the forced demolition of unused fuel tanks (that needlessly used up some 50% of the lease property and took about two years to just remove the tanks), has resulted in nothing more than the open property now serving as the AES employee’s storage space (for motor homes and boats).
As to when the largely unused and un-needed occupation of the land will ever return to the City or Public (so as to at least allow alleviation of harbor access bottlenecking, (as virtually just two entry and exit roads exist for something like 30% of the City’s shoreline and about half that is dedicated to the occasional bicyclist, that and blocked off lanes for turning and through traffic).
As for main entrance to the harbor (Hermosa Ave.), it’s so severely in need of re-paving, that residents who value their kidneys, must creep along at less than 10 mph on Hermosa Avenue. Here again the plant seems to be contributing nothing but (long ago agreed upon cheap lease) monies to the City, with but one small exception, and that followed a City suit over non-paid taxes for an offsite, corner situated apparent electrical substation.
And that suit no doubt renewed the plant investor’s rage with the City, such as the plant now operates with every possible annoyance (apparently freely ignoring Federal, State, County laws and even City Ordinances all supposedly protecting the public from noise and air pollution).
So it’s this fiasco and big business contempt for abiding by the law, that the public is left alone to put up with. These feuding factions result on but one result and that’s the one with the deepest pocketbook nearly always winning out over the common man (wildlife nearly too all but forgotten).
As such, the public is left to put up with booming and screeching live steam releases, crumbling roadways, presumably decimated aquatic life, nasty black smoke, rust stains and soot covered possessions and disjointed harbor access, all of which, apparently more than irresponsibility (cost savings to the plant ownership), as it all seems obvious that the plant’s mismanagement is simply one more means of slapping the City and the Public right smack in our face.
