Oil and gas wells have significant impacts on air quality and public health for the communities living next door. Today’s announcement, however, is only a draft rulemaking - it will be at least another year after it is finalized before it takes effect, likely not until 2023, according to Wade Crowfoot, secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency. Crucially, however, the regulation as written does not prevent the redrilling or deepening of existing wells within the 3,200-foot setback distance. The proposed setback would prevent new wells from being permitted within the setback zone, as well as impose stringent new health and safety requirements on existing wells. Newsom noted in the announcement that the proposed setback would impact 30 percent of oil production in the state. The Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA), one of the most powerful lobbying forces in California, lobbied in opposition to two previous setback bills in response to today’s announcement, WSPA CEO Catherine Reheis-Boyd called the rulemaking “an activist assault on California’s way of life, economy, and people.” The new regulation, once implemented, would be the strongest in the country - stronger even than Colorado’s 2,000-foot setback, adopted last year despite bitter resistance from the oil industry. Countless frontline environmental justice communities have been waiting for this rule and we look forward to engaging in the process to ensure that workers and communities are protected as this rule is finalized.” “But now we need them to strengthen this rule and make it law. The governor’s announcement regarding the CALGEM rulemaking shows us that the Newsom administration is listening to us,” said Wendy Miranda of Communities for a Better Environment in a statement. “Wilmington residents have lived with the dangerous health impacts of oil drilling for far too long.
Black, Latino, and low-income communities are most commonly situated near oil wells - making setbacks a key issue to address environmental racism in the state. About 2 million Californians currently living within the setback distance of oil and gas wells would be protected by the new ruling a recent analysis from Grist and Capital & Main showed that 392 schools across the state, serving over a quarter of a million students, are within 2,500 feet of a well.
The new ruling will ban the permitting of oil and gas wells within 3,200 feet of community sites, including homes, schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and daycare centers.Ĭalifornia is one of the only oil-producing states that had no regulations on how close oil and gas wells can operate to the places where people live, study, and receive health care. Governor Gavin Newsom announced the new draft ruling from the California Geologic Energy Management Agency, or CalGEM, today in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Wilmington, one of the most polluted communities in the state. This story was produced in collaboration with Capital & Main, a nonprofit media publication focused on inequality.Īfter years of advocacy by frontline communities, California may finally be on the way to implementing a key health and safety regulation to protect communities living near oil and gas extraction facilities.