Sacramento takes another shot at a fracking ban. Senators Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Monique Limón (D-Santa Barbara) introduced Senate Bill 467, which halts the issuance or renewal of permits for hydraulic fracking, acid well stimulation treatments, cyclic steaming, and water and steam flooding starting January 1, 2022, and then prohibits these extraction methods entirely starting January 1, 2027.
With Culver City currently studying amortization of the Inglewood Oil Field, the passage of this bill could mean a faster and possibly less expensive process.
SB 467 will also prohibit all new or renewed permits for oil and gas extraction within 2,500 feet of any homes, schools, healthcare facilities or long-term care institutions such as dormitories or prisons, by January 1, 2022. Oil extraction near where people live, go to school, etc., is extremely harmful to people’s health. Oil extraction overwhelmingly occurs near where people of color and low income people live, causing significant negative health impacts. (The setbacks portion of the bill will be amended into SB 467 in 30 days, for administrative reasons.)
These production and extraction methods have been shown to pose significant risks to the environment and public health, particularly when conducted within 2,500 feet of human activity. The legislation also contains provisions to facilitate a transition of oil workers to jobs in well remediation and sealing.
“This bill boldly tackles head-on the need to prioritize the phasing out of the types of drilling that are directly harming California communities,” said Ann Alexander, a senior attorney for NRDC.“It is time that California’s leaders take on the state’s behemoth oil industry.”
SB 467 comes several months after Governor Gavin Newsom called on the Legislature to ban fracking. As climate change poses an existential risk to our planet and our state, it’s critical we act quickly to end the most environmentally harmful oil extraction practices, to protect public health, and to move aggressively toward a 100% clean energy economy.
Catie Stewart
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