First of two parts
[img]1762|right|Mr. John Kuechle||no_popup[/img]At last Thursday’s monthly meeting of the Community Advisory Panel that monitors the Baldwin Hills Oil Field, the two hours was spent soliciting neighbors’ suggestions for tightening the Community Standards District guidelines.
“You could call it a scoping meeting,” said CAP member John Kuechle of the heavily attended evening atop Kenny Hahn State Park. Surveying the ideas, he concluded that the recommended updates “are worthwhile.”
But that is all they are, suggestions.
The next step will be made by the County’s decision-makers.
Where Authority Rests
“Political judgment needs to be made, initially by the staff of the Planning Division, and then we will get to criticize it, and see as to whether there is the political will to make particular changes,” said Mr. Kuechle.
“Where we go from here is far from clear. Whether these ideas ultimately turn out to be useful only is something we will know in the fullness of time.”
Visiting anti-fracking expert Doug Shields of Pittsburgh recently said that municipalities should not rely on state governments to control fracking because they cannot be relied upon. Mainly, he contended, it is up to hometown governments.
“Whether the state can be relied on is a political judgment that I am not sure I am qualified to make,” said Mr.Kuechle.
“That might be right. I am not prepared to defend it, but I will for the purposes of argument accept it for the time being.”
Mr. Kuechle, an attorney, said that in the end, it does not matter because “whether the state can be relied on or not, they have the power. They have said they have exclusive jurisdiction” over the disputed drilling technique. “They have said that local entities can’t regulate it.
“People who have put together the Culver City ordinance have tried to come up with ways to tinker with the margins that they think have some ability to control it.
“There certainly are arguments why that position may be wrong.
“But,” said Mr. Kuechle, “it will take a brave, and I suspect a city wealthier than Culver City, to be willing to litigate with the state of California over this issue.
“It’s a tough fight. The state has all the ammunition on its side. They have the ability to fund lawsuits better than any individual city.”
(To be continued)
