FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 2, 2022
CONTACT
Kacey Bonner kbonner@chromacollaborative.com 310-402-3013
December 2, 2022
CONTACT
Kacey Bonner kbonner@chromacollaborative.com 310-402-3013
STAND-L.A. Demands Change While Celebrating Major Community Victory for Environmental Justice in LA as City Moves to Phase Out Drilling
Coalition calls for further action to advance racial justice in LA and echoes call for Kevin De León, Gil Cedillo to resign
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles City Council voted today to approve an ordinance that will prohibit new oil and gas extraction activities and phase out existing oil drilling citywide, a victory driven by a decade of advocacy by and for frontline communities. The ordinance developed by the Department of City Planning and the City Attorney’s office designates existing extraction activities a nonconforming land use in all zones of the city. The City’s Board of Public Works is also voting today to approve contracts to launch a citywide amortization study, an economic analysis which may justify shortening L.A. City’s default 20-year phase-out period for existing oil wells.
This ordinance will amend decades of racist land use decisions that concentrated oil drilling in Black and Brown communities. The vote comes at a time when the City Council continues to face growing community demands for accountability and a change in culture after a recording surfaced in October of Kevin de León, Gil Cedillo, former Council President Nury Martinez and others making racist remarks and exploiting the City’s redistricting process to disempower already disenfranchised Black Angelenos.
STAND-L.A. has echoed the calls of Black and Indigenous-led organizations and movements that there be no “business as usual” as long as Cedillo and de León remain on the City Council, and for Cedillo and de León to resign.
In response to City Council’s vote to phase out drilling at this time, STAND-L.A. issued the following statement:
This ordinance will amend decades of racist land use decisions that concentrated oil drilling in Black and Brown communities. The vote comes at a time when the City Council continues to face growing community demands for accountability and a change in culture after a recording surfaced in October of Kevin de León, Gil Cedillo, former Council President Nury Martinez and others making racist remarks and exploiting the City’s redistricting process to disempower already disenfranchised Black Angelenos.
STAND-L.A. has echoed the calls of Black and Indigenous-led organizations and movements that there be no “business as usual” as long as Cedillo and de León remain on the City Council, and for Cedillo and de León to resign.
In response to City Council’s vote to phase out drilling at this time, STAND-L.A. issued the following statement:
“The future of Los Angeles is one that will be free from fossil fuel extraction – and that is thanks to the hard work and persistence of frontline communities who fought for over a decade to make this happen. This win – the result of years of community-organizing, coalition building and multi-racial solidarity – signals that Black, Latinx and other communities of color currently living near polluting oil wells and derricks in South L.A. and Wilmington will eventually breathe easier. It is proof that people power can push elected officials to prioritize public health over polluters’ profits. Finally, this ordinance is a major opportunity to transform flawed land use and planning systems in our City, which have been historically polluted by systemic racism, into ones that actually serve and benefit all communities.
Yet, we cannot ignore that this vote comes as our City Council members are not doing enough to address the demands of Black and Indigenous communities in the wake of the leaked racist conversation between Councilmembers De Leon, Cedillo and Martinez and Ron Herrera. Our commitment to multi-racial solidarity and uprooting systemic racism in the long term demands that we continue supporting the call from our movement partners for no business as usual at the LA City Council and the resignations of Gil Cedillo and Kevin De León. That is why we will not be speaking inside Council chambers today and will not be joining council members to celebrate this victory later today.
We urge the City Council to go beyond acknowledging and condemning the disgraced council members’ racist remarks and power-grabbing scheme, and take greater action to address the policies that disproportionately harm Black and Indigenous communities. Our City and this Council must own up to the anti-Blackness that created policies that allowed oil drilling in neighborhoods in the first place and that fostered an environment where such a horrific example of racism and corruption could occur between council members.
This ordinance is a victory for frontline communities, for environmental justice, for cleaner air and our climate, and for the entire City’s health. However, it is also clear that this single ordinance will not fix the systemic racism that is embedded into our City’s laws. It was community power that pushed the ordinance into existence, and it is community power that will oust Kevin de León and create a City that embodies the principles of environmental and racial justice. We must ensure racial justice and equity are not just buzzwords, but real values that are consistently acted on and voted for through concrete, bold policies.
We have a lot of work to do, and today’s victory speaks to the power we have to create change. To the frontline communities and allies who persisted for the right to clean air, healthy neighborhoods and justice, we say: Today is yours. Today, you have won.”
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Yet, we cannot ignore that this vote comes as our City Council members are not doing enough to address the demands of Black and Indigenous communities in the wake of the leaked racist conversation between Councilmembers De Leon, Cedillo and Martinez and Ron Herrera. Our commitment to multi-racial solidarity and uprooting systemic racism in the long term demands that we continue supporting the call from our movement partners for no business as usual at the LA City Council and the resignations of Gil Cedillo and Kevin De León. That is why we will not be speaking inside Council chambers today and will not be joining council members to celebrate this victory later today.
We urge the City Council to go beyond acknowledging and condemning the disgraced council members’ racist remarks and power-grabbing scheme, and take greater action to address the policies that disproportionately harm Black and Indigenous communities. Our City and this Council must own up to the anti-Blackness that created policies that allowed oil drilling in neighborhoods in the first place and that fostered an environment where such a horrific example of racism and corruption could occur between council members.
This ordinance is a victory for frontline communities, for environmental justice, for cleaner air and our climate, and for the entire City’s health. However, it is also clear that this single ordinance will not fix the systemic racism that is embedded into our City’s laws. It was community power that pushed the ordinance into existence, and it is community power that will oust Kevin de León and create a City that embodies the principles of environmental and racial justice. We must ensure racial justice and equity are not just buzzwords, but real values that are consistently acted on and voted for through concrete, bold policies.
We have a lot of work to do, and today’s victory speaks to the power we have to create change. To the frontline communities and allies who persisted for the right to clean air, healthy neighborhoods and justice, we say: Today is yours. Today, you have won.”
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Even as Oil Drilling Phase out Ordinance Clears Another Hurdle, STAND-LA Repeats “No Business as Usual” Call For de León and Cedillo to Resign
When City Council Members Nury Martinez, Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León, along with LA County Federation of Labor leader Ron Herrera were caught espousing anti-Black, anti-indigenous racism and bigotry while plotting a redistricting scheme to disenfranchise Black voters, we Angelenos made our voices heard. In the wake of this discovery, numerous organizations, civil leaders, politicians, and concerned constituents issued statements and flooded City Hall condemning these actions and calling for resignations from everyone involved. While Martinez and Herrera have heeded this demand, Cedillo and de León continue to resist the will of the people, and in doing so, hold up important business in front of the Council. STAND LA released a statement and a promise: “We are committed to partnering with all those struggling for racial justice to be the backbone this city needs and deserves.” Today, we back up our promise and stand with Angelenos of all races and ethnicities to demand that no Council business be conducted until Cedillo and de León resign their seats.
This is a defining moment for Los Angeles. It requires us all to examine our values and decide whether we will be on the right side of history. That is why we have called for a cancellation of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee meeting scheduled to take place tomorrow, October 18th, where the historic ordinance that will phase out oil drilling across the city and serve as a step forward for racial and environmental justice is on the agenda – effectively calling for a pause on almost 10 years of advocacy. While this meeting is a critical step in the process of getting this ordinance passed and making neighborhood oil drilling a thing of the past, we believe that values of racial justice and solidarity require bold action.
As a coalition that has successfully brought together Black and Brown communities to fight for environmental justice, we are encouraged by this moment of Angelenos coming together and standing firm in the demand for accountability. Like others across the city, we are choosing to act in solidarity with Black-led organizations and movements who are saying there will be no “business as usual” as long as Cedillo and de León remain on the City Council. We call on all our allies to do the same.
This is a defining moment for Los Angeles. It requires us all to examine our values and decide whether we will be on the right side of history. That is why we have called for a cancellation of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee meeting scheduled to take place tomorrow, October 18th, where the historic ordinance that will phase out oil drilling across the city and serve as a step forward for racial and environmental justice is on the agenda – effectively calling for a pause on almost 10 years of advocacy. While this meeting is a critical step in the process of getting this ordinance passed and making neighborhood oil drilling a thing of the past, we believe that values of racial justice and solidarity require bold action.
As a coalition that has successfully brought together Black and Brown communities to fight for environmental justice, we are encouraged by this moment of Angelenos coming together and standing firm in the demand for accountability. Like others across the city, we are choosing to act in solidarity with Black-led organizations and movements who are saying there will be no “business as usual” as long as Cedillo and de León remain on the City Council. We call on all our allies to do the same.
STAND-LA Supports Call For “No Business as Usual”
at City Council
When City Council Members Nury Martinez, Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León, along with LA County Federation of Labor leader Ron Herrera were caught espousing anti-Black, anti-indigenous racism and bigotry while plotting a redistricting scheme to disenfranchise Black voters, we Angelenos made our voices heard. In the wake of this discovery, numerous organizations, civil leaders, politicians, and concerned constituents issued statements and flooded City Hall condemning these actions and calling for resignations from everyone involved. While Martinez and Herrera have heeded this demand, Cedillo and de León continue to resist the will of the people, and in doing so, hold up important business in front of the Council. STAND LA released a statement and a promise: “We are committed to partnering with all those struggling for racial justice to be the backbone this city needs and deserves.” Today, we back up our promise and stand with Angelenos of all races and ethnicities to demand that no Council business be conducted until Cedillo and de León resign their seats.
This is a defining moment for Los Angeles. It requires us all to examine our values and decide whether we will be on the right side of history. That is why we have called for a cancellation of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee meeting scheduled to take place tomorrow, October 18th, where the historic ordinance that will phase out oil drilling across the city and serve as a step forward for racial and environmental justice is on the agenda – effectively calling for a pause on almost 10 years of advocacy. While this meeting is a critical step in the process of getting this ordinance passed and making neighborhood oil drilling a thing of the past, we believe that values of racial justice and solidarity require bold action.
As a coalition that has successfully brought together Black and Brown communities to fight for environmental justice, we are encouraged by this moment of Angelenos coming together and standing firm in the demand for accountability. Like others across the city, we are choosing to act in solidarity with Black-led organizations and movements who are saying there will be no “business as usual” as long as Cedillo and de León remain on the City Council. We call on all our allies to do the same.
This is a defining moment for Los Angeles. It requires us all to examine our values and decide whether we will be on the right side of history. That is why we have called for a cancellation of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee meeting scheduled to take place tomorrow, October 18th, where the historic ordinance that will phase out oil drilling across the city and serve as a step forward for racial and environmental justice is on the agenda – effectively calling for a pause on almost 10 years of advocacy. While this meeting is a critical step in the process of getting this ordinance passed and making neighborhood oil drilling a thing of the past, we believe that values of racial justice and solidarity require bold action.
As a coalition that has successfully brought together Black and Brown communities to fight for environmental justice, we are encouraged by this moment of Angelenos coming together and standing firm in the demand for accountability. Like others across the city, we are choosing to act in solidarity with Black-led organizations and movements who are saying there will be no “business as usual” as long as Cedillo and de León remain on the City Council. We call on all our allies to do the same.
STAND-LA Coalition Denounces Racist & Bigoted Remarks of Los Angeles City Council Members and Calls For Their Resignation
LOS ANGELES – In response to the leaked audio from a conversation between Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez, Council members Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León, and now former Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera in 2021, STAND-LA made the following statement:
“As a multiracial coalition committed to racial and environmental justice, STAND-LA adds our voices to the growing chorus condemning the unconscionable anti-Black, anti-Indigenous racism and anti-LGBTQIA+ bigotry espoused by Los Angeles City Council members Nury Martinez, Kevin de León, and Gil Cedillo, and former President of the LA County Federation of Labor Ron Herrera. We join the call led by Black and Brown community leaders from across our city and urge all three Council members to resign their seats on the City Council immediately.
“The appalling comments made by these individuals represent historic, present, and systemic racism in our country, our city and our council. While the sentiments denigrating Black, LGBTQIA+, and Indigenous communities – including a young child – are themselves abhorrent, it is also telling that three powerful Council members and a prominent LA labor leader plotted to restrict and reduce the political and economic power of already disenfranchised Black Angelenos. Neighborhood oil drilling exists because of the same dynamics on display during this backroom manipulation of the City’s electoral redistricting process: racism, abuse of power and anti-democratic processes that allow for Black and Brown people to continually be sacrificed and our communities erased.
Yet, their hunger for power at the expense of solidarity is not the norm. Our coalition has worked for over a decade to build multiracial and ethnic grassroots power to challenge corporations and city planners who have sacrificed Black and Latinx neighborhoods to toxic oil drilling for generations. The revelations in this conversation are a stark reminder that our communities must continue leading the charge to uproot racism, create a democracy that works for all, and drive real change. We are committed to partnering with all those struggling for racial justice to be the backbone this city needs and deserves.”
###
“As a multiracial coalition committed to racial and environmental justice, STAND-LA adds our voices to the growing chorus condemning the unconscionable anti-Black, anti-Indigenous racism and anti-LGBTQIA+ bigotry espoused by Los Angeles City Council members Nury Martinez, Kevin de León, and Gil Cedillo, and former President of the LA County Federation of Labor Ron Herrera. We join the call led by Black and Brown community leaders from across our city and urge all three Council members to resign their seats on the City Council immediately.
“The appalling comments made by these individuals represent historic, present, and systemic racism in our country, our city and our council. While the sentiments denigrating Black, LGBTQIA+, and Indigenous communities – including a young child – are themselves abhorrent, it is also telling that three powerful Council members and a prominent LA labor leader plotted to restrict and reduce the political and economic power of already disenfranchised Black Angelenos. Neighborhood oil drilling exists because of the same dynamics on display during this backroom manipulation of the City’s electoral redistricting process: racism, abuse of power and anti-democratic processes that allow for Black and Brown people to continually be sacrificed and our communities erased.
Yet, their hunger for power at the expense of solidarity is not the norm. Our coalition has worked for over a decade to build multiracial and ethnic grassroots power to challenge corporations and city planners who have sacrificed Black and Latinx neighborhoods to toxic oil drilling for generations. The revelations in this conversation are a stark reminder that our communities must continue leading the charge to uproot racism, create a democracy that works for all, and drive real change. We are committed to partnering with all those struggling for racial justice to be the backbone this city needs and deserves.”
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WILMINGTON RESIDENTS DEMAND ACTION FROM THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES AGAINST ILLEGAL DRILLING ACTIVITIES
Frontline Communities, Joined by U.S. Congresswoman Nanette Barragán, Expose Gross Permitting Violations By Warren Resources That Harm Community Health
LOS ANGELES – Frontline residents and allies from across Los Angeles came together at a press conference today in Los Angeles’ Wilmington area to demand the City of Los Angeles take action against oil operator Warren Resources (Warren Inc.) for illegal oil drilling activities that threaten community health and safety. The press conference was held by Communities for a Better Environment (CBE), Standing Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-LA), and U.S. Congresswoman Nanette Barragán who joined them to expose actions by Warren Inc. that disregard local permitting regulations and have been occurring since 2018, including failing to conduct comprehensive environmental reviews and misrepresenting information in at least 19 permit applications to the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency in violation of the Los Angeles Municipal Code. Participants in the press conference called on the city to shut down Warren Inc.’s illegal operations without delay. They also demanded that the City of Los Angeles expedite drafting and adopting the ordinance to phase out oil and gas extraction based on a motion that the Los Angeles City Council passed in January 2022.
“The oil industry is not above the law. They will not take advantage of my constituents in Wilmington,” said Congresswoman Barragán. If it’s a fight they want, they’ve got one. We will not stand silent and let them prioritize profits over the health, safety and quality of life of our community. The oil industry would not dare try illegally drilling next to homes and parks in affluent communities like Malibu, Bel Air or Brentwood, so they target our Latino working-class neighborhoods instead. Unpermitted oil drilling is illegal, it must be shut down immediately, and the operator needs to be held fully accountable by Los Angeles.”
Speakers also highlighted the role the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency, California’s Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), has played in allowing oil operators to skirt regulations and put communities’ health and safety at risk. They noted that CalGEM routinely fails to coordinate with local oversight agencies that impose additional regulations on the oil and gas industry. This failure often results in the rubberstamping of oil operation approvals while undermining local measures aimed at protecting the environment and public health. Alison Hahm, an attorney for CBE who works with STAND-LA, likened CalGEM to its predecessor, the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR), which was formerly responsible for oversight of the oil and gas industry in California.
Ms. Hahm said, “The whole point of replacing DOGGR with CalGEM was to shift oversight focus to holding fossil fuel companies accountable and prioritizing protecting public health and the environment. CalGEM has instead simply maintained the status quo, and their complacency continues to help grow Big Oil’s profits while failing to protect people. Warren Inc.’s ability to dodge local review and manipulate CalGEM’s permitting process is a stark reminder that the only way to truly safeguard communities is to phase out urban oil drilling entirely. No one should be forced to live on the frontlines of oil drilling.”
CalGEM’s failure to regulate oil and gas operators and protect Californians, in contravention of Governor Gavin Newsom’s unequivocal promise to transition away from fossil fuels, was on full display last week. Community organizers found thirteen wells spewing a flood of methane in explosive quantities into a neighborhood in Bakersfield. CalGEM’s health and safety setbacks rulemaking process – a process that would prevent this type of methane flood in the future if it applied to existing wells – is still delayed. In light of this health hazard, CBE, VISIÓN, and other environmental justice groups called on CalGEM and the Newsom Administration to put setbacks into law and apply them to existing wells immediately.
Finally, Wilmington resident and intern with CBE’s Youth for Environmental Justice program Nizgui Gomez spoke about Warren Inc.’s illegal actions in the context of the community that lives next to oil and gas drilling sites. Her remarks underscored the significant inequity that frontline communities face and how they disproportionately bear the burden of dirty industries like oil and gas because companies treat them as expendable.
“We all deserve to live in healthy communities, yet Warren Inc. and other oil companies have broken the rules for decades while carelessly putting residents’ health in harm’s way,” said Gomez. “I’ve lived in this neighborhood for years, and as my health has worsened, Warren’s pockets have grown. Through the years, Warren Inc.'s numerous violations prove they don’t care about our communities, and far too many so-called leaders have co-signed on our communities as “sacrifice zones” without a thought. Now our communities are saying no more and that it’s beyond time to phase out this dirty industry and put community health and safety first.”
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“The oil industry is not above the law. They will not take advantage of my constituents in Wilmington,” said Congresswoman Barragán. If it’s a fight they want, they’ve got one. We will not stand silent and let them prioritize profits over the health, safety and quality of life of our community. The oil industry would not dare try illegally drilling next to homes and parks in affluent communities like Malibu, Bel Air or Brentwood, so they target our Latino working-class neighborhoods instead. Unpermitted oil drilling is illegal, it must be shut down immediately, and the operator needs to be held fully accountable by Los Angeles.”
Speakers also highlighted the role the state’s oil and gas regulatory agency, California’s Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), has played in allowing oil operators to skirt regulations and put communities’ health and safety at risk. They noted that CalGEM routinely fails to coordinate with local oversight agencies that impose additional regulations on the oil and gas industry. This failure often results in the rubberstamping of oil operation approvals while undermining local measures aimed at protecting the environment and public health. Alison Hahm, an attorney for CBE who works with STAND-LA, likened CalGEM to its predecessor, the Division of Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Resources (DOGGR), which was formerly responsible for oversight of the oil and gas industry in California.
Ms. Hahm said, “The whole point of replacing DOGGR with CalGEM was to shift oversight focus to holding fossil fuel companies accountable and prioritizing protecting public health and the environment. CalGEM has instead simply maintained the status quo, and their complacency continues to help grow Big Oil’s profits while failing to protect people. Warren Inc.’s ability to dodge local review and manipulate CalGEM’s permitting process is a stark reminder that the only way to truly safeguard communities is to phase out urban oil drilling entirely. No one should be forced to live on the frontlines of oil drilling.”
CalGEM’s failure to regulate oil and gas operators and protect Californians, in contravention of Governor Gavin Newsom’s unequivocal promise to transition away from fossil fuels, was on full display last week. Community organizers found thirteen wells spewing a flood of methane in explosive quantities into a neighborhood in Bakersfield. CalGEM’s health and safety setbacks rulemaking process – a process that would prevent this type of methane flood in the future if it applied to existing wells – is still delayed. In light of this health hazard, CBE, VISIÓN, and other environmental justice groups called on CalGEM and the Newsom Administration to put setbacks into law and apply them to existing wells immediately.
Finally, Wilmington resident and intern with CBE’s Youth for Environmental Justice program Nizgui Gomez spoke about Warren Inc.’s illegal actions in the context of the community that lives next to oil and gas drilling sites. Her remarks underscored the significant inequity that frontline communities face and how they disproportionately bear the burden of dirty industries like oil and gas because companies treat them as expendable.
“We all deserve to live in healthy communities, yet Warren Inc. and other oil companies have broken the rules for decades while carelessly putting residents’ health in harm’s way,” said Gomez. “I’ve lived in this neighborhood for years, and as my health has worsened, Warren’s pockets have grown. Through the years, Warren Inc.'s numerous violations prove they don’t care about our communities, and far too many so-called leaders have co-signed on our communities as “sacrifice zones” without a thought. Now our communities are saying no more and that it’s beyond time to phase out this dirty industry and put community health and safety first.”
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Los Angeles Environmental Justice Activist Nalleli Cobo Wins Prestigious Global Prize for Environmental Leadership
Goldman Environmental Prize awarded Cobo for her activism
to end neighborhood oil drilling in California
to end neighborhood oil drilling in California
LOS ANGELES — Today, Los Angeles resident and environmental justice activist Nalleli Cobo, 21, received the Goldman Environmental Prize for her work to end neighborhood oil drilling in South Los Angeles and across California. The Goldman Environmental Prize is awarded to grassroots environmental champions from around the world who take significant action to combat climate change and to protect and enhance the natural environment.
Cobo began her activism in 2010, at the age of nine, when she started experiencing medical problems including bloody noses, chronic headaches, and heart palpitations caused by toxic fumes from the AllenCo Oil, Inc. oil drilling facility next door to her family’s apartment in the University Park neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Since its founding, Cobo has worked alongside the Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-L.A.) coalition in advocating for a phase-out of oil drilling in neighborhoods in Los Angeles.
“I am so excited to receive the Goldman prize as a symbol of the power of communities like mine and of young people around the world who fight every day for climate justice,” Cobo said. “Like so many other activists of color and young climate activists, I did not choose activism. It was born out of survival. We were raised in neighborhoods without the privilege of clean air or green spaces. We inherited environmental breakdown. We were given no other choice than to fight for our communities and our future.”
Cobo’s work with STAND-LA, as well as statewide coalitions including the Last Chance Alliance and Voices in Solidarity Against Oil in Neighborhoods (VISION), has contributed to significant wins to stop oil and gas production across California. In January of 2022, the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to pass a motion that will begin the process of phasing out oil drilling throughout the City of Los Angeles.
“I’ve known Nalleli since she was born – I’ve seen her grow from a shy child into a young environmental justice leader in her own right, and a speaker of great power and eloquence,” said Nancy Halpern Ibrahim, Executive Director of Esperanza Community Housing Corporation, a STAND-L.A. Steering Committee member. “Nalleli’s painful witness of health harms in the community, underscored by her own health impacts have propelled her to demand environmental justice for all communities, and the right to breathe clean air. Nalleli’s commitment is as powerful as it is steadfast, and she will continue to accomplish incredible feats in the name of environmental and climate justice.”
The Goldman Prize recognizes individuals for sustained and significant environmental activism, often at great personal risk or sacrifice. Cobo has balanced her activism with being a full-time student, and now attends college with the hopes of one day becoming a civil rights activist. In 2019, she was also diagnosed with cancer of the reproductive system—which led to a year of undergoing treatment. Since going into remission, Cobo has continued to advocate for the end of urban oil drilling across California.
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Cobo began her activism in 2010, at the age of nine, when she started experiencing medical problems including bloody noses, chronic headaches, and heart palpitations caused by toxic fumes from the AllenCo Oil, Inc. oil drilling facility next door to her family’s apartment in the University Park neighborhood of South Los Angeles. Since its founding, Cobo has worked alongside the Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-L.A.) coalition in advocating for a phase-out of oil drilling in neighborhoods in Los Angeles.
“I am so excited to receive the Goldman prize as a symbol of the power of communities like mine and of young people around the world who fight every day for climate justice,” Cobo said. “Like so many other activists of color and young climate activists, I did not choose activism. It was born out of survival. We were raised in neighborhoods without the privilege of clean air or green spaces. We inherited environmental breakdown. We were given no other choice than to fight for our communities and our future.”
Cobo’s work with STAND-LA, as well as statewide coalitions including the Last Chance Alliance and Voices in Solidarity Against Oil in Neighborhoods (VISION), has contributed to significant wins to stop oil and gas production across California. In January of 2022, the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to pass a motion that will begin the process of phasing out oil drilling throughout the City of Los Angeles.
“I’ve known Nalleli since she was born – I’ve seen her grow from a shy child into a young environmental justice leader in her own right, and a speaker of great power and eloquence,” said Nancy Halpern Ibrahim, Executive Director of Esperanza Community Housing Corporation, a STAND-L.A. Steering Committee member. “Nalleli’s painful witness of health harms in the community, underscored by her own health impacts have propelled her to demand environmental justice for all communities, and the right to breathe clean air. Nalleli’s commitment is as powerful as it is steadfast, and she will continue to accomplish incredible feats in the name of environmental and climate justice.”
The Goldman Prize recognizes individuals for sustained and significant environmental activism, often at great personal risk or sacrifice. Cobo has balanced her activism with being a full-time student, and now attends college with the hopes of one day becoming a civil rights activist. In 2019, she was also diagnosed with cancer of the reproductive system—which led to a year of undergoing treatment. Since going into remission, Cobo has continued to advocate for the end of urban oil drilling across California.
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January 26, 2022
L.A. CITY COUNCIL VOTES UNANIMOUSLY TO MOVE FORWARD
WITH ENDING OIL DRILLING CITYWIDE
Vote Directs the City Planning Department to Draft an Ordinance Declaring Oil and Gas
Extraction a Non-Conforming Land Use Throughout Los Angeles
Extraction a Non-Conforming Land Use Throughout Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES — After a decade of advocacy by frontline communities, the Los Angeles City
Council voted unanimously to pass a motion that advances phasing out oil and gas extraction
across the city. The motion specifically directs the Department of City Planning to work with the
City Attorney’s office to draft an ordinance that prohibits any new oil and gas extraction
operations and makes existing extraction activities a nonconforming land use in all areas of the
city.
The ordinance will also include a study to determine the phase-out period, a plan to plug
and remediate inactive wells and direction to the City to participate in L.A. County’s Just
Transition Taskforce to ensure an equitable transition plan for impacted oil workers. Today’s vote
is a clear victory led by impacted residents who have tirelessly promoted public health and racial
and environmental justice in Los Angeles. The motion was introduced by Councilmember Paul
Krekorian and seconded by Council President Nury Martinez.
The vote serves as a turning point for Los Angeles spurred by years of community organizing
and advocacy from residents who have been subjected to the ill effects of oil drilling and
environmental justice advocates with the STAND-L.A. coalition. Together, they gathered support
from across Los Angeles and urged L.A. City Council members to protect public health by
phasing out neighborhood oil drilling.
During discussion of the motion, community members emphasized the need to protect public
health. They also voiced how important it is to ensure that workers employed at oil drilling
companies are supported as the citywide phase-out unfolds gradually in the coming years.
Speakers congratulated the decision-makers for approving this precedent-setting win-win policy
that removes planning obstacles and provides opportunities for community revitalization,
economic development and job creation in some of the most impacted communities in Los
Angeles.
The City Planning Department will now draft an ordinance that will then head back to the City
Council for final approval, after it is reviewed by the L.A. City Planning Commission.
Council voted unanimously to pass a motion that advances phasing out oil and gas extraction
across the city. The motion specifically directs the Department of City Planning to work with the
City Attorney’s office to draft an ordinance that prohibits any new oil and gas extraction
operations and makes existing extraction activities a nonconforming land use in all areas of the
city.
The ordinance will also include a study to determine the phase-out period, a plan to plug
and remediate inactive wells and direction to the City to participate in L.A. County’s Just
Transition Taskforce to ensure an equitable transition plan for impacted oil workers. Today’s vote
is a clear victory led by impacted residents who have tirelessly promoted public health and racial
and environmental justice in Los Angeles. The motion was introduced by Councilmember Paul
Krekorian and seconded by Council President Nury Martinez.
The vote serves as a turning point for Los Angeles spurred by years of community organizing
and advocacy from residents who have been subjected to the ill effects of oil drilling and
environmental justice advocates with the STAND-L.A. coalition. Together, they gathered support
from across Los Angeles and urged L.A. City Council members to protect public health by
phasing out neighborhood oil drilling.
During discussion of the motion, community members emphasized the need to protect public
health. They also voiced how important it is to ensure that workers employed at oil drilling
companies are supported as the citywide phase-out unfolds gradually in the coming years.
Speakers congratulated the decision-makers for approving this precedent-setting win-win policy
that removes planning obstacles and provides opportunities for community revitalization,
economic development and job creation in some of the most impacted communities in Los
Angeles.
The City Planning Department will now draft an ordinance that will then head back to the City
Council for final approval, after it is reviewed by the L.A. City Planning Commission.
In response to the Council’s passage of the motion, STAND-L.A. coalition members
released the following statements:
released the following statements:
“This morning’s vote represents a tremendous victory for frontline communities across the city of
Los Angeles. Unified within STAND-L.A., their strategic and tenacious campaign to outlaw
neighborhood drilling has culminated in our elected council members voting to end one of the
City's most noxious structural inequities and begin repairing the harm driven by decades of
racist planning and zoning policies. These policies have caused frontline communities across
Los Angeles severe and lasting health impacts, destructive land uses and toxic air pollution that
contributes to climate change. This morning’s vote begins the work of phasing out all existing
operations and leads the way for an equitable transition to jobs that promote community health
and economic growth. Many thanks to members of our City Council who supported and
championed this motion, and understand their responsibility as stewards of the City to maintain
its sustainability for future generations."
Nancy Halpern Ibrahim, MPH, Executive Director, Esperanza Community Housing
"Today's vote to prohibit new oil and gas extractions and phase out existing oil drilling sites in
our city is monumental and a direct result of years of grassroots advocacy. After six years of
organizing in South L.A., we are deeply grateful for the frontline communities that have lent their
voices and leadership to address the harmful health impacts of urban oil drilling and build a
healthier city. SCOPE celebrates this win with South L.A. residents and leaders, while
recognizing there is still work to do to fulfill L.A. City's commitment to public health equity
grounded in racial and environmental justice. We look forward to being part of the process to
help draft an ordinance as quickly as possible."
Gloria Medina, Executive Director, SCOPE LA
“This is a very important day for the environmental justice communities in Los Angeles. After
being adversely impacted by polluting oil drilling operations in their neighborhoods for
generations and after a decade of advocacy and perseverance, frontline communities and youth
activists from Wilmington to South L.A. have proven the skeptics wrong. We have shown that if
you fight for justice and stay the course, you can make a difference and change the policies that
impact your health and your quality of life.”
Ashley Hernandez, Youth Organizer and Wilmington community leader, Communities for
a Better Environment
"No community should be a sacrifice zone. Today, we celebrate this vote for bringing us one
step closer to protecting the health of our low-income, Black and brown neighbors living next to
the inherently dangerous practice of oil drilling. Years of collective work by these frontline
communities, medical and health professionals and environmental justice advocates have led
us to this moment. We must continue to stand with Angelenos as they fight for the right to
breathe clean air. Today is proof that Los Angeles can lead the charge toward a just, equitable
transition to a clean energy future."
Martha Dina Arguello, Executive Director, Physicians for Social Responsibility - L.A. and
Co-Chair, STAND-L.A.
“Today’s vote to end oil extraction in the City of Los Angeles is as a result of the persistent
advocacy of the STAND-L.A. Coalition for justice and equity. It is also a major victory for public
health in our communities against environmental racism that says: Our people matter. Our
families and children will be protected. We deserve toxic-free environments. And health is a
human right. This vote paves the way for imagining a physically transformed and healthy South
Los Angeles.
Rev. Louis Chase, Holman United Methodist Church
“Years of tireless community organizing, advocacy, research and public education by frontline
environmental justice organizations led to this historic vote. Today, Los Angeles – a city built on
the world’s largest urban oil field – is turning away from its toxic past toward a more sustainable
and just future.”
Richard Parks, President, Redeemer Community Partnership
“Today’s vote at the City Council to phase out oil drilling in Los Angeles is the result of years of
patient and steadfast organizing by residents and community organizations across Los Angeles.
Liberty Hill issued our DRILLING DOWN report in 2015 to call attention to the plight of residents
living next door to toxic and dangerous oil drilling. And from South L.A. to the Harbor, frontline
residents have worked diligently to educate our city’s representatives about the harmful health
and climate impacts of oil drilling. Liberty Hill is proud to stand with and support frontline
communities and celebrates today’s victory.”
Shane Murphy Goldsmith, President/CEO Liberty Hill Foundation
”Today’s vote to end oil extraction is a huge milestone towards health equity in our community.
Black Women for Wellness celebrates this victory in solidarity with all of the Black women and
families in the frontline - You are seen and more importantly, you have been heard. We will
continue our work with STAND LA to ensure that our health is valued and our future generations
are sustained with policies that keep our livelihood in mind.”
Kaela Thomas, Environmental Justice Coordinator, Black Women for Wellness
Los Angeles. Unified within STAND-L.A., their strategic and tenacious campaign to outlaw
neighborhood drilling has culminated in our elected council members voting to end one of the
City's most noxious structural inequities and begin repairing the harm driven by decades of
racist planning and zoning policies. These policies have caused frontline communities across
Los Angeles severe and lasting health impacts, destructive land uses and toxic air pollution that
contributes to climate change. This morning’s vote begins the work of phasing out all existing
operations and leads the way for an equitable transition to jobs that promote community health
and economic growth. Many thanks to members of our City Council who supported and
championed this motion, and understand their responsibility as stewards of the City to maintain
its sustainability for future generations."
Nancy Halpern Ibrahim, MPH, Executive Director, Esperanza Community Housing
"Today's vote to prohibit new oil and gas extractions and phase out existing oil drilling sites in
our city is monumental and a direct result of years of grassroots advocacy. After six years of
organizing in South L.A., we are deeply grateful for the frontline communities that have lent their
voices and leadership to address the harmful health impacts of urban oil drilling and build a
healthier city. SCOPE celebrates this win with South L.A. residents and leaders, while
recognizing there is still work to do to fulfill L.A. City's commitment to public health equity
grounded in racial and environmental justice. We look forward to being part of the process to
help draft an ordinance as quickly as possible."
Gloria Medina, Executive Director, SCOPE LA
“This is a very important day for the environmental justice communities in Los Angeles. After
being adversely impacted by polluting oil drilling operations in their neighborhoods for
generations and after a decade of advocacy and perseverance, frontline communities and youth
activists from Wilmington to South L.A. have proven the skeptics wrong. We have shown that if
you fight for justice and stay the course, you can make a difference and change the policies that
impact your health and your quality of life.”
Ashley Hernandez, Youth Organizer and Wilmington community leader, Communities for
a Better Environment
"No community should be a sacrifice zone. Today, we celebrate this vote for bringing us one
step closer to protecting the health of our low-income, Black and brown neighbors living next to
the inherently dangerous practice of oil drilling. Years of collective work by these frontline
communities, medical and health professionals and environmental justice advocates have led
us to this moment. We must continue to stand with Angelenos as they fight for the right to
breathe clean air. Today is proof that Los Angeles can lead the charge toward a just, equitable
transition to a clean energy future."
Martha Dina Arguello, Executive Director, Physicians for Social Responsibility - L.A. and
Co-Chair, STAND-L.A.
“Today’s vote to end oil extraction in the City of Los Angeles is as a result of the persistent
advocacy of the STAND-L.A. Coalition for justice and equity. It is also a major victory for public
health in our communities against environmental racism that says: Our people matter. Our
families and children will be protected. We deserve toxic-free environments. And health is a
human right. This vote paves the way for imagining a physically transformed and healthy South
Los Angeles.
Rev. Louis Chase, Holman United Methodist Church
“Years of tireless community organizing, advocacy, research and public education by frontline
environmental justice organizations led to this historic vote. Today, Los Angeles – a city built on
the world’s largest urban oil field – is turning away from its toxic past toward a more sustainable
and just future.”
Richard Parks, President, Redeemer Community Partnership
“Today’s vote at the City Council to phase out oil drilling in Los Angeles is the result of years of
patient and steadfast organizing by residents and community organizations across Los Angeles.
Liberty Hill issued our DRILLING DOWN report in 2015 to call attention to the plight of residents
living next door to toxic and dangerous oil drilling. And from South L.A. to the Harbor, frontline
residents have worked diligently to educate our city’s representatives about the harmful health
and climate impacts of oil drilling. Liberty Hill is proud to stand with and support frontline
communities and celebrates today’s victory.”
Shane Murphy Goldsmith, President/CEO Liberty Hill Foundation
”Today’s vote to end oil extraction is a huge milestone towards health equity in our community.
Black Women for Wellness celebrates this victory in solidarity with all of the Black women and
families in the frontline - You are seen and more importantly, you have been heard. We will
continue our work with STAND LA to ensure that our health is valued and our future generations
are sustained with policies that keep our livelihood in mind.”
Kaela Thomas, Environmental Justice Coordinator, Black Women for Wellness
CITY OF LOS ANGELES RELEASES LONG-AWAITED REPORT ON URBAN OIL DRILLING, RECOMMENDING PHASEOUT OF DRILLING
Fenceline residents and leaders claim the report fails to recommend sufficient protections against the health impacts of oil drilling
July 2019
Los Angeles, CA – The City of Los Angeles released a report conducted by the Petroleum Administrator's office analyzing the feasibility of a phase-out of oil and gas operations in communities. The report recommends that the City implement a 600-foot health and safety buffer between communities and existing oil wells, as well as a 1,500-foot buffer for new wells. If implemented, the proposed setback would phase out active oil wells over time within 600 feet of sensitive land uses such as homes, schools, and medical facilities.
The City’s report comes over two years after the Los Angeles City Council introduced a motion in June 2017, which gave the Petroleum Administrator a 120-day deadline to conduct this study. For the past two years, fenceline residents have worked closely with Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-L.A.) coalition and have pushed City leaders for the release of the report and health protective recommendations. STAND-L.A. is a diverse coalition of environmental justice, public health and faith-based groups.
“The report’s release is a long-awaited victory for fenceline communities, whose leadership has forced City officials to acknowledge the health impacts of Big Oil. The City is finally ready to move toward a citywide policy that addresses oil drilling in LA neighborhoods. However, the report’s recommendation for a 600-foot buffer is not nearly enough. The report fails to incorporate the best available science to recommend effective protections. We refuse to put a price on entire communities that are exposed to toxic oil emissions, and we refuse to sacrifice entire communities by accepting a 600-foot recommendation. Unlike oil companies, we don't discount the value of human life and community health.” said Martha Dina Argüello, co-chair of Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling and Executive Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility-LA.
The STAND-L.A. coalition has pushed for the release of the report as a necessary next step in implementing a 2,500-foot health and safety buffer intended to protect residents impacted by oil drilling in their neighborhoods. The report’s recommendation for a 600-foot buffer falls far lower than the coalition’s demand for 2,500 feet, which is referenced in multiple scientific studies on the health and safety impacts of oil and gas operations. These studies indicate that public health risks of exposure to toxic air contaminants (such as benzene and aliphatic hydrocarbons) are most significant within ½ mile (800 meters or 2,625 feet) from active oil and gas development.
“There is a growing body of research that shows that the closer someone lives to an oil and gas development facility, the higher the risk of being exposed to multiple health harming pollutants emitted from that facility,” said Bhavna Shamasunder, Associate Professor of Urban and Environmental Policy at Occidental College. “Studies have shown worse pregnancy and birth outcomes, migraine headaches, asthma exacerbations, loss of smell, respiratory illness, and psychological stress. These risks are of great concern in a densely-populated city like Los Angeles, where oil wells operate just feet away from homes, schools, and medical facilities. The evidence from Los Angeles and around the country should guide decision-making and public health protective action by city leaders.”
The study released today supplements a health report published last year by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (DPH), which confirmed that oil and gas extraction presents major public health concerns. The DPH report specifically highlighted the dangers that oil drilling poses to residents living in close proximity to wells and cited distance as a major risk factor. The DPH report itself does not recommend a distance, but noted that 1,500 feet is not enough to fully protect residents against explosions, fires, and other potential disasters.
In the City of Los Angeles Basin, 230,000 people live - and a large number of schools, elderly facilities, and daycare facilities are sited - within 2,500 feet of an active oil and gas well. Research shows that the impacts of fossil fuel infrastructure disproportionately impact working class communities of color, who are exposed to air toxins emitted from oil development and transport. Thousands of Angelenos living over 600 feet from active oil wells would remain unprotected from toxic emissions near their homes.
“My family knows what it’s like to live next to an oil well. If our city moves forward with a 600-foot buffer policy, many families will still be in danger,” said Beatriz, a resident of Wilmington and a leader at Communities for a Better Environment’s Wilmington Youth for Environmental Justice. “We’ve marched, we rallied, and we’ve gone to City Hall to demand that leaders release the report and take action - only to learn that many Wilmington residents will remain unprotected. Our leaders need to step up to a 2,500-foot health and safety buffer. I love my community, and it is high time for politicians to prioritize our health, which is not possible with a 600-foot buffer."
In addition to setback recommendations, the report also advised the City to establish regulatory measures and health and safety monitoring to mitigate the impacts of new and existing drill sites. Recently, Governor Gavin Newsom dismissed the head of DOGGR, the state agency principally responsible for enforcing these regulations, after finding that department officials overseeing key decisions for the oil industry owned shares in major oil companies.
“We’re talking about toxic facilities that regularly experience explosions, fires, and spills, located right next to homes and schools and daycare centers. Those are two fundamentally incompatible things. Communities like ours - those who live just feet away from harmful drill sites like AllenCo - have experienced too many cases of regulators’ negligence and incompetence to believe that regulation can help them,” said Rabeya Sen, Director of Policy at Esperanza Community Housing Corporation. “On top of that, we’ve now seen that top regulators are in the pockets of the oil industry rather than in service of community health. It’s clear more regulation is not the answer; a phase-out plan for wells in residential communities is the only way forward.”
As the City moves forward with implementation of the City’s Sustainability pLAn, environmental justice and climate advocates continue to push Mayor Garcetti and City Council to include a 2,500-foot health and safety as a core policy and move the city forward on a path to a clean energy economy.
“It’s clear our elected officials are committed to making Los Angeles an environmental leader in the country and the world. In this case, that means taking much bolder action than what is recommended in this report. For years, the leaders on this issue have been residents living next door to wells and refineries. Now it’s on City leaders to take the baton, put public health over polluting industries and implement a health and safety buffer of 2,500 feet,” said Jante Pruitt, Organizing Director of SCOPE-L.A.
“We are encouraged that the City of Los Angeles is acknowledging the urgent need to reform the way it permits oil drilling in a systematic way. We look forward to working with impacted communities, City leaders, workers, and forwarding-looking members of the business community to identify win-win revitalization and workforce development programs and policies that will further facilitate a health protective phaseout strategy,” said Bahram Fazeli, co-chair of STAND-L.A. and Policy Director at Communities for a Better Environment.
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