Westside : VEEP SPEAK

It wasn’t a great beach day by the Santa Monica Pier. It already was cloudy when police blocked off the bike path. Then they shut down the pier for a time. And lifeguard patrol boats hovered ominously just offshore.

But this was no drowning or beach-side brawl. It was security for a quick visit by Vice President Al Gore--in town to schmooze environmental allies and bash the Republicans for their proposed amendments to the Clean Water Act.

Gore accused the Republican congressional majority of “doing the bidding of the biggest polluters and the biggest and most powerful special interests in this country. . . . Now is the time to fight back.”

The Republican amendments to the 1972 law would permit less treatment of ocean-bound sewage and would loosen wetlands development standards, among other things.

“This change costs the state billions of dollars in tourist revenue, and it costs the health of our families,” said Gore, gesturing toward Santa Monica Bay.

During the 50-minute appearance, a friendly audience of local politicians and environmentalists urged Gore to increase his environmental activism.

A spokesman for the Natural Resources Defense Council suggested, for instance, that Gore urge the Environmental Protection Agency to extend Superfund status to Santa Monica Bay, to aid with the cleanup of 100 tons of sediment contaminated with the pesticide DDT.

Gore didn’t go near the water himself. He was whisked off by limousine to Los Angeles International Airport, on his way to a speech to a San Diego union.