LANDSCAPE:DeVore stands ground on plants

dpt-pollandscape19Text3K28JH76Political LandscapeDaily Pilot ON THE WEB

To comment on this column, go to www.dailypilot.com and click on "Blogs and Columns." Then click on the column and scroll to the bottom to find the comments field.

An earthquake that hit Japan on Monday reportedly damaged a nuclear power plant, but it hasn't shaken Newport Beach Assemblyman Chuck DeVore's resolve to allow new sources of nuclear power in California.

The incident has raised questions about whether nuclear plants should be located in areas that experience frequent earthquakes, such as Japan.

DeVore last week filed papers for a statewide ballot measure that would remove the ban on new nuclear facilities. He said Wednesday he's not concerned by Japan's earthquake mishaps, which various news reports listed as 1.2 tons of radioactive water spilled and 400 barrels of nuclear waste tipped over.

That wouldn't happen under his initiative because it doesn't allow plants to be built in quake-prone areas, DeVore said.

"We have a substantial seismic-safety exclusion zone in our initiative that excludes … roughly half of California's terrain" from being the site of a nuclear plant, he said, adding that the Japanese plant was older.

Also, he said, according to an article from Bloomberg News Service, the amount of radioactivity in the spilled water is about the same amount that's naturally present in 12 adults.

"I just don't see this as germane," DeVore said of Japan's quake. "If anything, you have a massive earthquake, the plant gets knocked offline like it's supposed to do, nobody's injured as a result of the damage and life goes on."

He has until Nov. 13 to gather 500,000 signatures to qualify for the ballot in 2008, and he's working on raising about $2.5 million to fund the signature drive. DeVore thinks it's unlikely nuclear plants would be built in Orange County because land costs are too high.

Donations for Marines' families

The Newport Harbor Republican Women are seeking donations that will help Marine families with the necessities of life.

The 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, which the city adopted in 2003, later this month will face their third deployment to Iraq in two years. A committee made up largely of former Marines has raised money to assist their families, especially while the unit is overseas, with expenses. They plan to get gift cards that will help the families make ends meet.