Los Angeles

Culver City Objects to Oil Drilling in Residential Area

Jennifer Halligan

Culver City has filed a lawsuit to stop oil drilling within city limits by challenging a Los Angeles County decision approving an environmental impact report that could allow 600 new oil wells over the next 20 years. Culver City officials want the oil fields to undergo a new review addressing health issues and changing regulations. The hearing, which was originally going to take place Monday, April 12, has been pushed to June 3 in order to give both parties time to negotiate a settlement. Houston based company Plains Exploration and Production Co. has already submitted applications for at least three wells in the field, which they claim they have the right to do because the land is already a working oil field. Representatives of Culver City say that because there is now a much bigger population of private residents in the area than there was when oil drilling first took place – more than a million people are currently living within five miles of the field – the company should not have the right to drill. Other organizations, such as the Natural Resources Defense Council, Concerned Citizens of South Los Angeles, the Citizens Coalition for a Safe Community and Community Health Councils Inc. have joined forces with Culver City to oppose drilling in the urban area.

• Argument for drilling: The oil fields were there long before the residential houses, so people should have known about the possibility of drilling before moving in. This particular oil field is heavily regulated and safe, and until there are alternative sources of fuel, it is better to get oil from domestic regions than anywhere else.
• Argument against drilling: The health and safety regulations for the oil fields are outdated and need to be reviewed, and some residents recall foul smells from a drilling incident in 2006. Also, many residents were made to believe that that the field was no longer in use, and the Natural Resources Defense Council had planned to put a park in its place.

Additional Reading:

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-oil3-2010apr03,0,946.story