The Annenberg Foundation Proposes a Very Controversial "Interpretive Center" on the Ballona Wetlands

Original Image Courtesy of the Annenberg Foundation

The Annenberg Foundation has proposed a very controversial  50 million dollar "interpretive center" on the Ballona Wetlands "Area C."

The Annenberg Foundation states that:
"(The interpretive center will include)... an auditorium, classrooms, a public lobby, exhibits on wildlife and domestic animals, facilities for an animal adoption and care program, veterinary facilities for animals on site, retail space, parking, and office space for staff."

It seems suspicious that the foundation wants to have veterinary facilities and animal adoption programs in an ecological reserve. A similar project in the Palos Verdes was not constructed due to a large amount of opposition in the surrounding communities (primarily, because it would have been built on public land). In my opinion, why does the foundation need to be so cheap? Can't they afford their own land to build an animal hospital and adoption center, instead of taking publicly owned land?

Although supporters say that the interpretive center would be built on highly degraded land in the uplands that has been dumped on and inhabited by the homeless, it is obvious that the area can be easily restored to precious upland habitat. Upland "Coastal Sage Scrub" habitat within California is a quickly disappearing, with only 15% remaining undeveloped. With 50 million dollars, the interpretive center can be built elsewhere.

The proposal can be seen at:  http://www.annenbergfoundation.org/node/50770

Finally Earthquake Early Warning Gets Some Widespread Publicity

Finally, this month, state senator Alex Padilla introduced a bill to hopefully fund an Earthquake Early Warning System for California. Although many may criticize the system, saying that $80 million dollars can be spent for other important purposes, I believe that this is very small price to pay for a system that can protect valuable infrastructure from billions of dollars of damage.

Earthquake Early Warning in Japan has saved a countless amount of money in sensitive infrastructure since its deployment in October 2007. For example, during the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami in 2011 not a single high-speed bullet train in the entire Tohoku Region derailed because of the automatic braking system that kicks when an Earthquake Early Warning is issued. Millions throughout the region were alerted up to a minute before the earthquake that it was coming, when their smart-phones buzzed with the Earthquake Early Warning tone.

NTT Docomo's "Area Mail" with the obvious EEW tone.

This video (stabilized) shows the 3-11 earthquake with the NTT docomo "Area Mail" tone.

This video shows the performance of EEW (On NHK TV) during the Iwate-Miyagi Nairiku Earthquake in 2008, the strongest earthquake after EEW's deployment before the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake.

An instructional video on EEW.

EEW and Tsunami Warning Japan on 12-7-12

This video shows a simulation of a large earthquake in Honshu.

In Southern California, in the event of a large earthquake on the San Andreas Fault, up to a minute of warning would be possible if the system were in place.

A news video on Shakealert on KCAL 9

For more information on Earthquake Early Warning Systems, see my earlier post:
http://socalearthscience.blogspot.com/2012/07/earthquake-early-warnings-saving-lives.html

You can also visit:
The Japan Meteorological Agency's EEW page: http://www.jma.go.jp/jma/en/Activities/eew.html
USGS's EEW page: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/earlywarning/
Caltech's EEW page: http://www.eew.caltech.edu/
Japan's EEW on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthquake_Early_Warning_(Japan)