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Army engineers criticize toll agency; letter to Dept. of Commerce from Corps says some statements inaccurate & misleading

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on April 15, 2008 at 6:47 am

From the Los Angeles Times:

In a strong rebuke by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the agency proposing a toll road through San Onofre State Beach has been accused of making false and misleading statements in an appeal to federal officials.

Col. Thomas H. Magness, the corps’ district director in Los Angeles, charged in a letter last week that the appeal by Irvine-based Transportation Corridor Agencies challenging the project’s denial by the state Coastal Commission contains false statements and mischaracterizes the Army’s role in the planning process.

“I am compelled to highlight a few areas of the public record where I have found inaccurate statements as well as inferences that misrepresent the Corps’ preliminary determinations,” Magness wrote to the U.S. Department of Commerce, which will rule on the appeal.

TCA officials angrily denied the allegations and may demand a retraction.

The six-page letter, experts suggest, could weaken the transit agency’s position by, among other things, calling into question the selection of the so-called Green Alignment that would cut through the state beach.

Contrary to the TCA’s appeal, Magness wrote, the corps has “at no time” ruled out other, less controversial routes. “It’s significant for the corps to weigh in that way,” said Deborah A. Sivas, director of the Environmental Law Clinic at Stanford Law School. Not usually known to be proactive, she said, the corps — judging from the tone of its letter — is sensitive to the TCA’s use of its name.

Read more on this story from the Los Angeles Times by clicking here.

April 15, 2008 · Filed Under Oceans and Beaches (all), San Onofre Toll Road

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