EDF Comments on California Legislative Action on Aliso Canyon Leak

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

“The legislature’s swift and concrete proposal for responding to Aliso Canyon, and cutting methane pollution across the board, is welcome news for protecting the people and environment of California. With its multi-part proposal, the state legislature is joining the governor and local leaders to both end the crisis and assess how to better manage our future energy infrastructure.

“It is critical that the legislature fully reviews the state’s rules governing well construction and maintenance, and that a commitment be made to continuously revise and improve standards overseeing California’s aging natural gas infrastructure. Aliso Canyon is a wakeup call not only for California but for other states to conduct similar reviews in order to prevent future leaks like this from happening. 

“We applaud the legislature for including a requirement that SoCalGas reduce methane pollution as restitution for the damage being done by the Aliso Canyon leak. It is critical that as the state sets these reduction measures, it looks to achieving a reduction aligned with the national goal of reducing oil and gas methane up to 45 percent by 2025. EPA recently proposed rules to help meet that goal across the country’s oil and gas infrastructure, and Aliso Canyon illustrates the importance of moving forward with those efforts.

“Legislative action is important to ensure lessons learned in response to Aliso Canyon last beyond the end of the crisis and prevent it for happening elsewhere. By codifying methane reduction commitments for California, the state legislature can help ensure the state reduces a pollutant that is responsible for 25% of today’s man-made warming.”

-Tim O’Connor, Director of California Oil and Gas at Environmental Defense Fund