Six Years is Too Long: Another Milestone in the Aliso Canyon Disaster Aftermath
October 23, 2021 marks six years since the odor of mercaptans escaping well SS-25 overwhelmed residents living near the Aliso Canyon Gas Storage Facility in northern Los Angeles.
In past years, residents and activists have planned events to commemorate the anniversaries of the onset of the worst gas disaster in U.S. history. These activities have included sit-ins at the facility’s front gate to a premiere of a documentary that featured environmental disasters, including Aliso, and press conferences discussing ongoing health issues and the need for more engagement by elected officials.
Last year, actions included a protest outside Governor Newsom’s suburban Sacramento home, a drive by protest outside the SoCalGas headquarters in downtown LA, and a webinar.
To kick off this year’s events, Save Porter Ranch and Food and Water Watch set up a press conference to discuss current issues, including a proposed increase on gas storage at Aliso that will be voted on by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC). Also discussed was the announcement the day before by Governor Newsom of a proposed state regulation that would ban any new oil and gas wells within 3,200 feet of homes, schools, and health care facilities.
The speakers were State Senator Henry Stern; the California Director of Food & Water Watch, Alexandra Nagy; Tyson Siegele, energy analyst with The Protect Our Communities Foundation; co-founders of Save Porter Ranch, Kyoko Hibino and Matt Pakucko; and co-founder of Environmental Health Research Andrew Krowne.
Senator Stern recounted the start of the onset, adding that six years later, “The risk remains.” He added, “The gas company likes to boast how safe it is nowadays. The fact that they still haven’t began the seismic study and delayed the work to assess the earthquake risk shows what safe means to them isn’t what safe means to us. This CPUC decision will be just one more test of our will to actually shut Aliso Canyon down.”
He pointed out that Aliso is worth a lot to Sempra (the parent company of SoCalGas).
“I hate being at these events. I want it to be done,” he said.
Alexandra Nagy quoted Governor Newsom’s reason in asking for the nation’s most aggressive setback, “California has put the profits of oil companies above the health and safety of Californians for too long.” She mentioned the November 18, 2019, letter the governor sent to the CPUC, directing the agency to expedite the closure of the storage facility. She said, “Unfortunately, the PUC has had six years in total to make progress, but has done everything to erode public confidence in their actions toward closing it.”
She added, “Really, it shows just more capitulation to SoCalGas and putting the profits of a powerful industry above public health and safety.” She explained that the last time there was an increase in gas storage at Aliso was in May 2019. SoCalGas, with help from oil companies, had been pushing the CPUC to allow another increase, but was rejected by the agency a year ago. Unfortunately, the commissioners will be looking again at an increase at the November 4th voting meeting.
Citing the support for the closure of Aliso Canyon by the LA County Board of Supervisors, the LA City Council, and the Los Angeles Unified School District, Nagy said, “We’re urging the PUC to reject this request by oil companies and SoCalGas to increase storage limits. It is time for California to prioritize health and safety over fossil fuel profits.”
Tyson Siegele said that as far as the need for the existence of Aliso Canyon’s facility, “The fossil fuel industry is pushing a false narrative.” He described the many ways that there are better ways to provide energy reliability.
Kyoko Hibino explained why the last twelve months, since the last year’s anniversary, have been the hardest for her as she was diagnosed with cancer, went through treatment, and suffered the passing of her cat due to cancer.
“When governmental agencies, elected officials, media, lawyers move on, we are still left with the ongoing gas smell, strange chemical smell, and the health issues, as long as SoCalGas and government agencies do nothing to protect our communities from a toxic environment,” she said. “We still have nosebleeds, headaches, palpitations, brain fog, Aliso cough, and each day I heard of another person diagnosed with cancer in the community.” She then held up a bag of bloody tissues from nosebleeds she has had this year. She also pointed out that she doesn’t have any symptoms when away from the area.
“It is a mental and emotional trauma which stays with me regardless of where I go.”
Matt Pakucko mentioned the recent offer from SoCalGas for plaintiffs in the mass tort to consider by June 1, 2022. He pointed out, “It doesn’t come close to resolving the North Valley disaster that continues fall out and health issues.” He mentioned his own continuing heart palpitations and brain fog after returning from the temporary relocation during the blowout, and said that several other people in the area have the same problems. “Permanent ongoing health problems and that’ s just the people we know of.”
He further discussed the mitigation measures that were put in place in 2016 that clearly worked to avoid any blackouts. He referred to the feasibility study, which was started because of Senator Stern’s SB-380 legislation, adding that it was not about rates, “Yet the CPUC hijacked that legislation and turned this feasibility study into a rate issue. How that happen? This needs to change.”
He also brought up that the independent Blade Energy root cause analysis was so damning that the CPUC started a separate safety investigation.
Andrew Krowne was the final speaker. Along with two other members of the Aliso Canyon Disaster Health Study Community Advisory Group, he founded Environmental Health Research, a nonprofit that is looking into starting an independent health study into the long-term health effects of Aliso Canyon on residents. He also created the Environmental Health Tracker which thousands of residents used to keep track of symptoms.
“The community has taken the lead from day one. Even before the SS-25 blowout, Save Porter Ranch was hard at work to stop the expansion of oil drilling,” he said.
He mentioned that a local physician started looking at his patients’ symptoms right after the blowout began. He discussed how community members formed groups such as the Aliso Moms Alliance and a support group for pet owners, many of whom lost pets due to Aliso’s toxic emissions.
He recounted how SoCalGas had removed the subsurface safety valve in well SS-25 in the 70s, and never replaced it. He said that not only wasn’t there any sanctions from the regulators, but those agencies feigned ignorance of the removal. “Are we talking about ignorance or incompetence?”
“Where was the immediate and widespread evacuation of anyone who was smelling the toxic cloud? Which, by the way, is the standard operating procedure of LA County Fire Hazmat, that you evacuate until you can no longer smell the odor. Where was the SCAQMD during the disaster, collecting as much of the valuable data as possible in order to know what damage was being done to our environment, to the people of this community. Instead, we get flawed data with no idea of the components of the toxic soup.”
All the speakers directed a message toward Governor Newsom, telling him he needs to honor his campaign promise from 2018 to shut down Aliso Canyon.
On the day of the anniversary, Save Porter Ranch hosted a table at the Granada Hills Street Faire at which attendees can get handouts about the CPUC meeting, make a donation, and get questions answered. At noon, more than 35 residents and activists met at the booth to start a march that circled the perimeter of the event twice, while they held signs and chanted.
To end the week, some residents and activists will travel to Sacramento and hold a rally outside the Capitol on October 29th.
With the continuing health and safety risks in mind, those who want to protect the lives of the 1.5 million residents affected by the SoCalGas site will want to take part in the November 3rd workshop and the November 4th voting meeting, both held by the CPUC.
At the Workshop to Examine Aliso Canyon Replacement Scenarios, consultants from FTI “will present additional detail, costs, and feasibility assessment of these portfolios and request public input on the design of an additional portfolio.” This fifth portfolio will be in addition to other portfolios that have been discussed in previous workshops.
Note that FTI Consulting Inc. was hired by the CPUC to serve as consultants on phase 3 of Order Instituting Investigation I.17–02–002, which was opened in 2017 to look into whether the use of Aliso Canyon can be reduced or eliminated. But this firm has a history of not only working on behalf of the oil and gas industries, but also utilizing iffy methods such as creating astroturf profiles to help promote the use of fossil fuels.
The public can access the virtual event, to be held between 9:30am and 4:30pm, through this address:
https://cpuc.webex.com/cpuc/onstage/g.php?MTID=e2ba7d499589f61ce04572263e336b2af
Event Number: 2493 315 2581
Event Password: FTIWorkshop2021
Toll Free Call-In Number: 1–855–282–6330
Toll Call-In Number: 1–415–655–0002
Call-In Passcode: 2493 315 2581
Usually, the members of the public will have a chance to provide comment at times. Those who want to give informal comments on the workshop may email them to the Service List and alisocanyonoii@cpuc.ca.gov.
According to the CPUC site, “You can also make your voice heard in this proceeding, and read the comments of others, on our online Docket Card comment section at apps.cpuc.ca.gov/c/I1702002.”
This is the agenda for the workshop.
The next day, the CPUC will hold voting meeting #3496, starting at 10am. Members of the public can call (800) 857–1917 and then the participate passcode 9899501#. Then press *1 (star one) to be placed in a queue. Participants will be placed on mute in “listen-only” mode until the public comment portion of the meeting. Each person will get up to one minute to give a comment.
This is the agenda for the meeting. The items of interest are 17 and 17A.
This is the link to the webcast: http://www.adminmonitor.com/ca/cpuc.
The Save Porter Ranch website lists talking points here.
If you are unable to give public comment during this meeting, you can also leave your comment on the public comment tab of the I.17–02–002 proceeding (link above) or send it to alisocanyonoii@cpuc.ca.gov.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted on July 27th to send a letter to the CPUC urging the agency not to increase the capacity at Aliso. A similar resolution for the LA City Council was introduced on August 3rd, but was referred to the Rule Committee, where it still sits to this date.
