N.Y.'s new leader can take a stand

3/14/08
The dramatic downfall of New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer will have impacts far beyond the Empire State, and one of them might be in the middle of Long Island Sound. The governor’s voice was expected to be vital in the decision over a proposed liquefied natural gas terminal in New York waters, and his sudden resignation leaves his state’s role up in the air.
The Broadwater terminal would be built just over the state line, leaving Connecticut out of the regulatory loop. The federal government has already offered its blessing, mistakenly, so the last chance to stop the privatization of the public waterway falls to New York. As the principal beneficiaries of the project’s output, that state’s opposition is far from guaranteed.
Our own Gov. M. Jodi Rell, basing her remarks on a task force she set up to examine the project, termed the proposal “an environmental nightmare.” She’s right, but she unfortunately has little say in the matter. The authority falls to New York’s governor-in-waiting, Lt. Gov. David Paterson, who will take office Monday. His feelings on the matter, like most of his views, are a mystery.
If he examines the proposal on the merits, he will find that the terminal is a bad idea from every perspective. Long Island Sound, with its narrow entryway to the east, is the wrong place for a high-security energy facility.
Every time tankers come in to refill the terminal, the opening into the Sound will effectively close while the Coast Guard escorts the potential terrorist targets to their destinations. These constant closures would stifle business all along the water, to say nothing of the problems they would cause for boaters of every stripe. Long Island Sound is the definition of a public good; it does not belong to private industry.
Paterson, without question, will have his hands full when he takes office. For all the good Spitzer did as New York’s attorney general, he made few friends as governor among his state’s political elite, and his successor will deal with the consequences.
But Paterson faces a decision, and soon, over New York’s stance on the Broadwater terminal. He must do what is right not just for Connecticut, but for his own state and all who value Long Island Sound. He must reject this defilement of one of our most precious resources.