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STAND-L.A. Statement on Momentous CalGEM Oil and Gas Setback Draft Rule

10/22/2021

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Yesterday, the California Geologic Energy Management Agency (CalGEM) issued a momentous draft rule banning the permitting of oil and gas wells within 3,200 ft of homes, schools, hospitals, and detention centers. The draft rule promises to set into motion a directive made by Governor Newsom almost two years ago to take action on the issue of neighborhood oil and gas extraction. 

Los Angeles is home to the largest urban oil field in the United States. Due to decades of redlining, environmental racism, and indifference of elected officials, the majority of these oil fields are concentrated in low-income Black and Latinx communities from South Los Angeles to Wilmington. This rule is an important development to protect the over 200,000 Angelenos that live within half a mile (2,500 feet) of oil drilling.

“Wilmington residents have lived with the dangerous health impacts of oil drilling for far too long. The Governor’s announcement regarding the CALGEM rulemaking shows us that the Newsom administration is listening to us,” said Wendy Miranda, Wilmington Community Member, Communities for a Better Environment. “We need the Governor and his team to strengthen this rule. And at the same time we need local elected officials in the City of Los Angeles to address hundreds of wells in our neighborhood not covered by the draft rule -- and to finally approve their own proposal to comprehensively phase out oil drilling in our City.  Countless frontline environmental justice communities have been waiting -- and organizing -- for years. Whether it’s at LA City Hall or in Sacramento, we will continue to organize until policies protecting our neighborhoods from big oil become law." 

“Today’s announcement represents years of work by environmental justice advocates to put public health first after over a century of prioritizing oil company profits above health and safety. Governor Newsom and his administration are now listening to the front line communities and health professionals who have borne the burden of proving harm from oil extraction,” said Martha Dina Arguello, executive director of PSR-LA. “The Governor’s leadership should spark the Los Angeles City Council into action, to pass a motion before the end of 2021 to phase out oil drilling across the city. We know there is no safe distance for oil and gas drilling, and until we phase out all drilling, our communities will continue to be at risk from day-to-day operations and the continuous threat of catastrophic accidents like we saw in Orange County."

“For generations, the health and quality of life of low-income BIPOC communities have been compromised for the profit of oil industries. We've worked with South Los Angeles community leaders for years, building a large-scale grassroots movement that centers their experiences with the collective vision of completely phasing out oil drilling,” said Gloria Medina, executive director of SCOPE. “Today's announcement is an important first step towards holding oil industries accountable by building a standard setback for oil drilling sites. We commend the Governor's decision to prioritize frontline communities. We are hopeful that California will continue to work towards an equitable and just transition that centers the voices of low-income BIPOC communities.”
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 You can find the full text of the draft rule here. 

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STAND-L.A. Statement on Huntington Beach Oil Spill

10/14/2021

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Earlier this month, a pipeline owned by Houston-based oil and gas company Amplify Energy Corp. ruptured, spilling up to 144,000 gallons of crude oil into the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Huntington Beach, CA.  The spill has infiltrated various wetlands and ecological reserves, threatening the habitat of sea life and sea birds alike. The full extent of the ecological damage won't be known for another couple of weeks. In response, Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency for Orange County to assist with cleanup efforts. The county’s board of supervisors also declared a local emergency on Tuesday.

In response to the disaster, Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-L.A.) released the following statement:

“This disaster is yet another example of the dangers of both on-shore and off-shore oil extraction. While we applaud the urgency of the state and county government response to this catastrophe, low-income Black and Brown communities have been made to wait years for action from state and local officials to address the public health emergency of oil drilling in neighborhoods like South LA and Wilmington. This spill puts in relief what was already clear to frontline communities: the end of the fossil fuel era can’t arrive fast enough. We are encouraged by the bold action of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors last month to move to phase out oil drilling in unincorporated areas, and we urge city, state, and federal officials to move as quickly as possible to end oil drilling, full-stop. "
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Culver City Votes to Phase Out Oil Extraction Within City Limits

6/18/2021

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Los Angeles City Advocates Applaud Precedent-Setting Rule to Dismantle Toxic Oil Infrastructure and Urge LA City Council to Follow Suit

Los Angeles — On June 17, 2021, the Culver City Council voted in support of an ordinance that will phase out oil production and require the cleanup of well sites in the portion of the Inglewood Oil Field within Culver City’s borders within five years. 
This decision comes after eight years of organizing and advocacy from Culver City residents and clean air and environmental advocates. Culver City is the first city in the nation to set a vision and a timeline for an amortization of existing oil extraction activity. 
Prior to the vote, Culver City determined through an amortization study process that a five-year phase-out period provides an adequate time period to facilitate a “just transition” (i.e., training of workers and initiation of clean-energy programs), completion of environmental assessment and remediation studies and opportunity to outreach with oil field stakeholders (e.g. land owners and mineral rights holders).
In response to Culver City’s leadership, and as the  Los Angeles City Council also considers a motion to look into phasing out oil drilling, the Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling — Los Angeles (STAND-LA) coalition released the following statement: 
“We applaud the Culver City residents, environmental and clean air advocates and Culver City leadership for setting a national precedent to move their community beyond oil and gas extraction and toward a safer, healthier future. Within five years, the oil wells that currently drill and pollute in Culver City’s section of the Inglewood Oil Field—the largest urban oil field in the United States—could be replaced with more park space, cleaner air, and other community-beneficial uses. 

This is an outcome that every community in Los Angeles deserves. The Los Angeles City Council and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors must listen and learn from our neighbors in Culver City and work to phase out toxic oil drilling in communities of color, who are most severely impacted by fossil fuel pollution. Communities from South Los Angeles to Wilmington have been advocating for over ten years to see these toxic wells removed from their neighborhoods. Culver City has shared a model for what a responsible, rapid, and equitable just transition can look like—and it’s time for the rest of Los Angeles to follow suit.”

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LA names Erica Blyther the new Petroleum Administrator of the City of Los Angeles

5/25/2021

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Yesterday, May 24, 2021, Board of Public Works President Greg Good announced the appointment of Erica Blyther as the new Petroleum Administrator for the City of Los Angeles Office of Petroleum and Natural Gas Administration and Safety (OPNGAS). Blyther served as Acting Petroleum Administrator since late 2019 when the previous Administrator left to run the California Geological Energy Management Division (CALGEM) of the State's Natural Resources Department.

In response to this appointment, Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-LA) released the following statement: 

“We congratulate and look forward to continuing to work with Ms. Blyther, in her new role as Petroleum Administrator, as we work toward a healthier, more just Los Angeles. Representing frontline communities across Los Angeles who live next to toxic oil infrastructure, STAND-L.A. looks forward to seeing Ms. Blyther use the power of her new position to lead with the ultimate goal of protecting public health and ushering Los Angeles into a clean air and clean energy future for all Angeleno communities, workers and families. As the Los Angeles City Council considers the opportunity to phase out oil drilling across the City to protect communities and prepare for a just transition away from fossil fuels, we hope Ms Blyther will work with STAND-LA, the communities we represent, and the Council leaders as a partner in achieving environmental justice.”

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LOS ANGELES CITY COUNCIL ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE VOTES UNANIMOUSLY TO PURSUE A PHASE-OUT OF OIL DRILLING CITY-WIDE TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH

12/1/2020

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Oil drilling in Wilmington
Oil drilling in Wilmington, CA


Environment Committee Members Vote to Direct the City Attorney to Draft an Ordinance Declaring Oil and Gas Drilling a Non-Conforming Land Use Throughout Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES — Today, the Los Angeles City Council’s Environment, Climate Change, and Environmental Justice Committee voted unanimously to pass a motion directing the City Attorney to draft an ordinance declaring oil and gas extraction sites non-conforming land uses. The motion, which was introduced by Council President Nury Martinez in her last meeting as the Committee’s Chair, also advises the City Planning Department to report back on the necessary budget and staff requirements to address oil wells in residential neighborhoods, including hiring an expert to complete an amortization study.

The Committee acted on the conclusions of a recent City Attorney report confirming the City’s legal authority to take this action. At a meeting of the same committee two weeks ago, the City Attorney’s office indicated their willingness to defend such an ordinance against legal challenges from the oil industry or oil companies. The motion was seconded by Councilmembers Paul Krekoran and Paul Koretz, who signaled the Committee’s acknowledgment that oil and gas extraction is an incompatible land use in the City of Los Angeles. 

The unanimous vote came after years of community organizing and advocacy from residents impacted by oil drilling and environmental justice advocates with the STAND-L.A. coalition, urging the City to protect public health by phasing out neighborhood oil drilling. Councilmembers also echoed advocates’ calls for the City to help create a just transition plan supporting fossil fuel workers in family-supporting jobs in other industries as oil wells are phased out. 

The motion approved by the Committee today must now be approved by a full City Council vote. 

In response to the Committee’s vote, the STAND-L.A. coalition members released the following statements:

“Today’s win is indicative of the hard work & organizing that environmental justice groups have put into this fight for the last four years. As Councilchair Nury Martinez acknowledged during today’s meeting, this has been a long and slow process, but today’s motion confirmed that it has not all been for nothing. This is a win for frontline communities, public health, and environmental justice. We thank Nury Martinez for this monumental final action as committee chair and look forward to working with the next chair in 2021 to realize this motion.” - Hugo Garcia, Esperanza Community Housing Coalition

“Black Women for Wellness commends Councilwoman Nury Martinez for her courageous work with leading the Environmental Climate Change and Environmental Justice committee to this unanimous decision on setting back oil drilling from our homes, community and children. Public health and racial justice are intimately intertwined with environmental justice and this step forward acknowledges years of community organizing to bring attention to the impacts of oil drilling on our health. South Los Angeles will breathe a bit easier but we know our work is not done. As this goes before the entire Los Angeles City Council, we will work to encourage and embolden every city council member to STAND with us, to put community over oil corporation dollars, to value health, seek just transitions and lead with courage toward an environment that sustains our future on this planet” - Robert Akil Bell, Grants Manager, Black Women for Wellness
“In the midst of a global pandemic, the action taken by Energy, Climate Change, and Environmental Justice Committee to pursue a plan to phase out oil drilling in Los Angeles is more timely than ever. The cumulative threat to public health has been made abundantly clear by the devastating and disproportionate impacts of COVID-19 to communities exposed to high levels of pollution, predominantly BIPOC, working-class families. We applaud the committee’s decision to protect constituents on the frontlines of this crisis and pave the way towards a sustainable clean energy economy that benefits workers and communities.” - Gloria Medina, Interim Executive Director, SCOPE

“The Energy, Climate Change and Environmental Justice committee showed real leadership today in acknowledging that it is time to transition away from oil extraction in Los Angeles. We want to thank Councilmembers Nury Martinez, Paul Krekorian, and Paul Koretz for advancing this motion and dispelling the misconceptions perpetuated by the oil industry about the potential economic and legal implications of declaring oil drilling a non-conforming land use. Today the long-ignored public health concerns of residents were heard: no more drilling where we are living. As a coalition that has worked on this for many years, we hope that the rest of the City Council will show the bold and courageous leadership we heard in the Committee meeting today.” - Martha Dina Argüello, Executive Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility—Los Angeles 

“Today, Councilmembers Nury Martinez, Paul Krekorian, and Paul Koretz took an important step toward ending the era of toxic fossil fuel extraction in our neighborhoods. History now has its eyes on the City Council. And so do all Angelinos who want their children to grow up in a healthy and safe environment.” - Richard Parks, President of Redeemer Community Partnership

"Wilmington and other frontline communities have waited so long for the City of LA to listen to our concerns and prioritize our health. We appreciate the strong unanimous vote by the committee to pass this motion and are grateful for all the work and organizing efforts that environmental justice organizations have done for the past 5 years. We look forward to days without toxic oil drilling next to our homes, schools, and community facilities. Days with revitalized lands where our families, children, neighbors, and workers can live and work without having to sacrifice their health. Today was a big win for environmental justice communities." - Wendy Miranda, Wilmington community member and intern for Communities for A Better Environment

“Today’s unanimous vote was a major breakthrough that demonstrates the power of community organizing and persistence.  We are proud supporters of STAND LA and the grassroots community groups who have been fighting to protect their neighborhoods from the harmful impacts of continued oil drilling for years.  This is one of the key environmental justice issues facing Los Angeles, and we celebrate the leadership shown today by Council President Nury Martinez, Councilman Paul Koretz and Councilman Paul Krekorian.  Thank you for standing with those who are most vulnerable and putting us on the path to a just and equitable transition to renewable energy, clean air and healthy communities.”  - Shane Murphy Goldsmith, President & CEO, Liberty Hill Foundation




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Public Hearing on Sept. 20, 2016 will determine if FMOG can install gas flare and expand drilling in South L.A.

9/2/2016

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On Tuesday, September 20 at 4:30 pm, we are standing up against the installation of a gas flare in South Los Angeles. In June, the Zoning Administrator denied a proposal by Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas (FMOG) to install a flare and thereby expand drilling operations in our neighborhoods. But the oil industry isn't done fighting - they have appealed the decision and aim to bring a flare into our community regardless. 
Help us stop the flare! Join us at the public hearing or submit a letter using our letter template to the South Los Angeles Area Planning Commission! 
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L.A. VOTERS OVERWHELMINGLY WANT TO END NEIGHBORHOOD DRILLING

3/22/2016

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New Poll Shows Widespread Support for A Citywide Prohibition on Oil Extraction within 1500 Ft of Homes, Schools, and Hospitals

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Los Angeles, CA – Today, Stand Together Against Neighborhood Drilling (STAND-LA) released a new poll that shows that Angelenos overwhelming support a policy that would end oil extraction within 1500 feet of homes, schools and hospitals. Of the over 1200 likely voters that were surveyed, 72% said they would support a 1,500 foot health and safety buffer around all active oil extraction operations.
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The poll, which was conducted by the polling firm Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates, asked respondents, “does [a] proposal to limit oil extraction in the City of Los Angeles to areas at least 1500 feet away from homes, schools, and hospitals sound like something you would support or oppose?”
 
Across all divisions of race, age, gender, income, or education level, Angelenos agree that ending oil drilling in neighborhoods is a common-sense solution. The poll had strongest support among people of color (76%) and low-income voters (81%), the two communities who are disproportionally impacted by neighborhood drilling.

In Los Angeles, home to the country’s largest urban oil field, over 580,000 Angelenos live within five blocks of an active oil or gas well. In some cases, oil and gas wells are located just 30 feet from occupied homes. Over 91% of people who live within a quarter mile of an active oil or gas wells are people of color.
 
“I continue to be amazed at how oil and gas operations receive more consideration and protection from our elected officials than the residents who live around them,” said Pastor Kelvin Sauls of the Holman United Methodist Church, located near the Murphy drill site in West Adams. “Neighborhood drilling remains a contradiction to the vision that city officials proclaim for all Angelenos—regardless of the color or their skin or the size of their income.”
 
When asked to explain why they support such a policy in their own words, 79% of respondents said that it was necessary to protect the health or safety of those living near urban oil sites.  Community groups that have been living with drilling in their neighborhoods were not surprised by the overwhelming support for a protective buffer.
 
“The widespread popularity of this policy proposal supports what we have been saying—that oil extraction should not be happening in anyone’s backyard,” said Sandy Navarro of People Not Pozos. “We know that the fumes released during oil and gas extraction cause headaches, upper respiratory illness, nausea, nosebleeds and a possible increase in cancer risk. There is absolutely no reason why these sites should be allowed to operate in densely populated residential neighborhoods.”
 
The recent Porter Ranch disaster was also top-of-mind with respondents. Eighty-two percent of people said they were somewhat or very concerned that the chemicals being leaked from oil and gas wells all over the city are similar, if not more dangerous, than the gas that was flooding out of the ruptured well in Porter Ranch.
 
 “Angelenos are living atop a very old network of oil and gas pipelines, through which oil companies have regularly pumped highly corrosive acids and chemicals for decades,” said Niki Wong, a community organizer with Redeemer Community Partnership. “Those of us who live near one of these oil and gas operations are just one accident away from another disaster. We can’t wait around to become the next Porter Ranch.”

Curt Below, Senior Vice President at FM3, emphasized just how strong these results are. “It’s very rare to see such strong public support around this kind of policy, especially across demographic and ideological lines. Every subset of Angelenos that we tested showed majority support for a 1500 ft. health and safety buffer, even after presented with a list of potential downsides to the the proposal.”

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STAND Calls For Criminal Investigation After Oil Company Re-Opens Wells Next To Elementary School

3/9/2016

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Community Outraged After Oil Company Skirts Law to 
Avoid Costly Cleanup

LOS ANGELES— Today, STAND-L.A. is calling on City Attorney Mike Feuer to open a criminal investigation of Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas after the company re-opened more than a dozen idle oil wells across the street from an elementary school in South LA. Community members are outraged at what they say was a calculated maneuver to side-step the law and avoid the costs of permanently plugging the wells. 
 
The Los Angeles Times reports local residents had urged the Los Angeles Fire Department to demand the company either restart or close the idle wells, hoping to leverage a section of city code that would force the wells’ closure in the interest of community health and safety. Instead, Freeport reactivated the idle wells, restoring the flow of natural gas just across the street from the Carson-Gore Academy of Environmental Studies, named after environmental leaders Rachel Carson and Al Gore. 
 
STAND-L.A., a coalition of community groups dedicated to protecting public health from neighborhood drilling, wants immediate action to be taken against the company for converting water injection wells into gas producing wells without obtaining necessary city approval. The group is calling on the City Attorney to investigate whether the company intentionally chose to circumvent the law and put the health of Angelenos at risk in order to avoid the costs of cleanup.
 
This would not be the first time Freeport-McMoRan prioritized company interests over the lives of local community members, often ignoring the law without any accountability.  “The City Attorney should immediately open a criminal investigation into whether FMOG failed to obtain the required permits," argued Richard Parks, President of the non-profit Redeemer Community Partnership. "Furthermore, the Los Angeles Fire Department should move quickly to protect taxpayers by enforcing city code that requires hundreds of idle wells to be either activated or shut down. For too long the city’s elected officials have supported oil interests over the public interest, trading public health and safety for corporate profits. We need our city leaders to move quickly to protect its residents, first and foremost.”
 
Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas faces growing debt amidst falling oil prices and could be stalling to avoid costs of plugging the wells. If the company waits for bankruptcy, the burden would fall on on local taxpayers to pay for the cleanup, similar to what could happen at the oil site located at Beverly Hills High School. Veneco, the company leasing the well from the Beverly Hills School District, may go bankrupt before it can fulfill a condition of its lease requiring the site be cleaned by March 2017. Should Veneco file for bankruptcy before that time, the school district would be left responsible for all costs associated with paying for the cleanup. Freeport-McMoRan could be taking a similar tack with its Washington Boulevard site, hoping to avoid paying up to $500,000 to permanently close each well.
 
“Clearly, the City of Los Angeles has little to no idea what is going on with idle oil and gas wells within its jurisdiction," continued Richard Parks. "Across Los Angeles, oil companies have failed to shut down oil wells that have been idle for decades. We call on the City to join with the community and take action to have them abandoned. At a time when analysts are questioning whether Freeport-McMoRan can avoid bankruptcy, the City's lapse of oversight potentially places taxpayers at financial risk of a costly cleanup.”
 
Beyond the legal implications of their actions, Freeport-McMoRan put the health and safety of local community members at risk when it chose to reactivate the wells located next to an elementary school. When the Los Angeles Unified School District initially planned to open the school, the company previously operating the site, Plains Exploration & Production, chose to leave the wells idle, saying that the close proximity to the school would make it too difficult to operate the wells while complying with air quality regulations set by the SCAQMD. Freeport-McMoRan knowingly placed the health of children and nearby residents at risk by re-opening its wells and refusing to responsibly close and cleanup the site after being idle for more than five years.
 
“Exposure to hazardous gas and air pollutants from these oil wells put families – children especially – at risk for not just short term health impacts such as nosebleeds and headaches, but long-term issues that result from cumulative exposure, such as asthma, heart disease, respiratory illness and cancer." said Martha Dina Arguello of Physicians for Social Responsibility and a member of STAND-LA. "Oil wells don’t belong in anyone’s backyard, and how ironic that we see this happening across the street from a school named after two important environmentalists in our recent history. This is yet another example of Freeport-McMoRan, blatantly disregarding the health and safety of Angelenos.” 
 
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STAND-L.A. Justice (“STAND-L.A.”) is an environmental coalition of community groups that seek to end neighborhood drilling to protect the health and safety of Angelenos on the front lines of urban oil extraction.
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Press Statement on Los Angeles City Council motion to hire Petroleum Administrator

2/16/2016

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Los Angeles, CA--The Los Angeles City Council moved yesterday to fill the City’s vacant Petroleum Administrator position with a full-time employee. The motion offered a glimpse into the City’s deficiencies in regulating oil and gas production. Weak oversight has put the health of hundreds of thousands of Angelenos in danger by failing to provide the necessary protections from the toxic pollutants produced by neighborhood drilling operations.
 
The City’s move to fill this position indicates that they have failed to grasp the systemic problems caused by oil and gas extraction in Los Angeles. The motion offers too little, too late, leaving communities fearful that neighborhood drilling will continue to put the health of their families at risk.
 
In response to the motion, STAND-LA, a coalition of community groups dedicated to protecting public health from neighborhood oil drilling, released the following statement:
 
"The health impacts and safety threats to residents require a sweeping overhaul of our regulatory system, that has protecting residents’ welfare at its foundation. The City continues to fail to understand the gravity of the regulatory deficiencies, and filling a job position with vague responsibilities without a comprehensive process amounts to another symbolic band aid that seeks to maintain antiquated system that does not protect Angelenos. We cannot allow a new Petroleum Administrator to  double-down on the City’s broken regulatory framework for neighborhood oil and gas extraction. If the City is going to fill the position, it should be with someone whose training and experience is rooted in protecting public health and safety.”
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Media Statement On New Porter Ranch Lawsuit Filed by SCAQMD

1/27/2016

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 SQAQMD SUES SOCALGAS FOR NEGLIGENCE WHILE FAILING TO ACKNOWLEDGE ITS OWN NEGLIGENCE IN PROTECTING ANGELENO FAMILIES FROM DRILLING EMISSIONS  

Los Angeles, CA--Today, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) sued Southern California Gas Co., accusing the company of negligence in the massive Porter Ranch gas leak which has forced thousands to leave their homes and released 87,000 metric tons of methane. The lawsuit alleges that SoCal Gas violated air quality regulations and faults the company for their irresponsibly slow response to such a grave public health threat.

In response to SCAQMD’s suit, STAND-L.A., a coalition of community groups dedicated to protecting public health from neighborhood oil drilling, released the following statement:

“While STAND-L.A. strongly supports efforts to hold SoCal Gas Co. accountable for jeopardizing the health of Porter Ranch residents, it is surprising to hear allegations of negligence come from SCAQMD—an organization that has itself been neglecting the health of our communities for years. 

Residents across LA, have struggled with the daily consequences of oil drilling in their neighborhoods for generations. These communities, often low-income and of color, have reported the same symptoms as Porter Ranch—nose bleeds, headaches, asthma and other respiratory illness—but have received inadequate attention from the SCAQMD regulators who are responsible for protecting their health.  

In one case, the community surrounding the AllenCo drill site in South L.A. had to become their own regulators, mounting a public education campaign to arm and inform their community against the toxic emissions next door. It was only after they waited three years, staged numerous protests, and filed over 250 complaints that SCAQMD inspectors finally stepped in to take air samples. 
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The AQMD has also refused to require well operators to provide local notification before they pump tens of thousands of gallons of toxic acid under residents' homes. When families recently asked for 72-hour notice and same day certainty about when these acid jobs would take place so they could move their children out of harm's way, the SCAQMD board instead exempted some acid jobs from any notification and provided just 48-hour online notice with a week of uncertainty for others.

As a regulatory agency charged with safeguarding the health and safety of our communities, the SCAQMD’s double standard is an unacceptable and irresponsible. Their latest actions are proof of the environmental injustice of neighborhood drilling in Los Angeles.”
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    STAND-L.A. is an environmental justice coalition of community groups that seek to end neighborhood drilling to protect the health and safety of Angelenos on the front lines of urban oil extraction. ​

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