The City of Malibu has determined that there can be no geological hazard imaginable from its plan to inject 37 million tons of water into the top of the Malibu Coastal Fault. Read last week’s “Ask The Mayor” or this week’s official municipal communique, “City Updates and News.”
Now, some of us may question the wisdom of making a decision about the safety of something before the safety studies are even started. Some of us may also question the wisdom of injecting 37 million tons (the actual weight) of water directly into the top of an active earthquake fault, capable of a 6.5 quake, according to the USGS.
Have you seen any geologic studies about this? They’re not finished. In fact, they’re not even started. But the city is already sure, and is spending at least $5 million of our tax money to go this way.
Malibu residents have every right to ask for a 100 percent guarantee from an outside science agency that hasn’t already made up its mind that this scheme cannot possibly trigger a quake. Geoscience cannot predict quakes and cannot deliver that guarantee.
I do not know what is more offensive, the municipal propaganda or the faulty decision-making behind it.
Hans Laetz