Byline: Gary Alexander
I read the story, “Port of Los Angeles Offers Engine Replacement Program” (in the May 24-June 6 issue), with a great deal of interest.
I have often wondered just how much pollution is emitted on an average day by those old-technology two-stroke gasoline-powered outboards that so many dinghies and tenders still have. They are relatively cheap little leaky smoke-pots, yet their continued existence seems to leave a big ugly environmentally toxic footprint.
The Port of Los Angeles’ idea to induce boat owners at its marinas to replace these troublesome little kickers — by covering 75 percent of the replacement cost up to $2,000 — sounds like a win/win for everyone involved. The port cuts its overall pollution level (which makes government regulators happy), and owners get new, trouble-free four-stroke engines that don’t cause an environmentalist’s nightmare every time they start up.
With the port’s assessment on whether the engine is a practical solution in each applicant’s boating situation and a one-year minimum tracking agreement, with the boater having to agree to maintain the engine at a Port of Los Angeles marina, the program sounds like a great approach to an existing problem.
Gary Alexander
San Diego
