Long Beach port extends public comment period for major development

Long Beach port extends public comment period for major development The Port of Long Beach has extended by nearly a month the public comment period for environmental documents detailing the impacts of a proposed $750 million container terminal development.
   The original deadline for the 45-day public comment period was July 11, but port officials approved an extension until Aug. 8.
   According to port officials, two public meetings on the documents have attracted more than 200 people and about 150 have submitted comments.
   The Middle Harbor Redevelopment Project started life nearly 10 years ago as a major component of the port's mega-terminal development plan. The plan calls for the consolidation of two adjacent terminals on the port's Piers D, E, and F into a single 345-acre container terminal. The project will also include the creation of nearly 55 acres of new land through the use of landfill.
   Though the environmental documents for the plan received approval in 2001, the port did not begin construction. New environmental guidelines for terminal development now require the port to update the project's Environmental Impact Report. In addition to the state-mandated EIR, the project now requires a similar federal Environmental Impact Statement.
   If project would be the first such major development at Long Beach since concerns over environmental litigation halted development more than three years ago. The Long Beach port's self-imposed moratorium followed shortly after a 2002 lawsuit and subsequent settlement against the neighboring Port of Los Angeles that halted development in Los Angeles over fears of additional legal actions.