TV Commercial Displays Potential Perils of Proposed Massachusetts LNG Terminal

Jun 16, 2004 - Providence Journal, R.I.
Author(s): Mark Reynolds

Jun. 16--FALL RIVER, Mass. -- The latest assault on a proposed port facility for receiving liquefied natural gas comes in the form of a television commercial narrated by a fifth-grader.

 

"They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but these pictures could be worth a lot more," 11-year-old Andrea Souza says.

 

Footage of sailors on Mount Hope Bay segues other scenes including the aftermath of a deadly accident at an Algerian LNG facility earlier this year.

 

Souza, the daughter of former City Councilwoman Ann O'Neil- Souza, recites an ominous list: "Millions of pollutants dirtying our air and water.

 

"Billions of dollars spent on public safety. And possibly, thousands of lives lost.

 

"LNG not for me," she says, "Or you."

 

The commercial and two other 30-second ads were unveiled yesterday at City Hall.

 

Opponents of the terminal proposed for Weaver's Cove hope the ads will generate even greater opposition to the project.

 

"As more and more people join the effort to fight, it makes the company nervous," said Mayor Edward M. Lambert Jr. "It makes the federal government nervous."

 

Starting tomorrow, the commercials will air locally on Fox Cable News, ESPN, and other cable channels carried by Comcast Cable. The campaign, sponsored by the Coalition for Responsible Siting of LNG, aims to air the ads 500 times.

 

They were produced by two Fall River men, Michael Herren and Gerry Landy, who have their own production company, Hope Street Pictures.

 

The commercials detail a few LNG accidents, but they make no specific mention of terrorism.

 

Opponents often argue that an LNG facility is a logical target for terrorists who hope to unleash a deadly inferno.

 

 


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