February Coastal Commission Report

The February Coastal Commission took place virtually on Wednesday, February 9 through Friday, February 11. The first monthly meeting of the Commission’s eleven annual meetings was relatively uneventful with a lighter agenda and not many controversial items. Still, a few developments did spark some public participation, one being the proposed coastal trail improvements by CalTrans at Mussel Shoals. Several local residents spoke against the trail improvements citing concerns regarding historic vandalism and parking restrictions but the project was approved by the Commission in accordance with the agency’s charge to maximize public access to the coast. The meeting also resulted in one vote chart for a new home in Malibu on Broad Beach. This new home would be subject to sea level rise and coastal hazards; a number of special conditions were imposed to potential impacts to the coast and reliance on future shoreline armoring.

On Friday morning during public comment, ActCoastal partners unveiled a film, In Harm’s Way, to demonstrate the catastrophic impact extreme weather and the climate crisis will have on the proposed location of the Brookfield-Poseidon desalination plant and city-at-large within the next 20 to 50 years. The simulation is available in English and Spanish. Additional tools including a 360 degree version and an interactive app allow the viewer to view the surrounding area and to alternate the various scenarios in order to compare site impacts at different time periods up to 50 years from now. The tools have been made available for public use on the website California Desal Facts on the Climate Crisis page. (This simulation is best viewed on Google Chrome. The Simulation may not work on Safari or older systems like Windows 7.)

The proposed Brookfield-Poseidon desalination plant coastal development permit will be on the Coastal Commission’s March agenda and is scheduled for a special hearing on March 17. Please sign the action alert asking the Commission to deny this project today!