It is interesting to note the different positions taken by our various governmental bodies.
The Federal government will not permit drilling in the vast unpopulated area of Anwar because it may upset some caribou.
At the same time, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is considering expanding drilling in the center of one of the most densely populated areas of the country.
The Supervisors are considering granting Plains Exploration & Production Co. (PXP) the right to drill as many as a thousand new wells in the Baldwin Hills area of West Los Angeles.
Our Board of Supervisors is considering the approval of an operation that will expel toxins and carcinogens in the middle of a heavily populated residential area.
Barely 16 Years Ago
Also, remember in 1992, there was an underground gas tank explosion in Brenhan, Texas, that destroyed structures in a three- mile radius and caused damage in a radius twice that distance. The damage would have been much worse had Brenhan been as densely populated as West Los Angeles. And what is the County doing to prevent such an occurrence here. They are placing the project under a Community Standards District (CSD).
This CSD will establish operating standards, requirements and procedures for the project. But while this CSD will be approved by the Board of Supervisors, the draft was produced by PXP. I don’t remember the Federal government asking the mob to draft our RICO laws.
The County also required that an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) be produced for the project. According to the Draft EIR, there are only two impacts caused by the project that cannot be mitigated to insignificant — earthquake danger and cumulative traffic.
Remember the Titanic
It implies that the toxins expelled into the air will be insignificant because the various toxins expelled will be less than so many parts per million, a number established by some governmental agency. Some of the toxins, like formaldehyde and toluene, are so dangerous that 1 part per million should be too much.
I guess they want us to believe that, with new technology, the dangers from expelled toxins and from explosions are insignificant.
Of course, thanks to the new technology of the time, the Titanic was unsinkable. We need to contact our Supervisors and tell them not to rush the approval.
Take their time and make sure everything is correct. We don’t want 2008’s Best Picture to be “Baldwin Hills,” a big screen epic based on the Baldwin Hills disaster.
Tom Supple may be contacted at tomjsup@ca.rr.com
