Governor Gavin Newsom is proposing a bill that would make it harder for the Las Flores Pipeline to restart, while at the same time approving some permits for oil and gas production in Kern County.
The bill has different guidelines for offshore drilling versus onshore drilling.
But Climate Rights International Executive Director Brad Adams says Newsom is trying to play both sides when we need to phase out fossil fuels.
Adams says this is the first report they’ve done on a climate issue here at home.
He says what happens to the Las Flores Pipeline is important to the trajectory of the climate change debate worldwide.
“If California shows weakness, if California can’t stick to its guns, can’t shut down a pipeline that’s so obviously dangerous and so obviously going to break in the future, then we have, you know, very little hope of success in fighting climate change,” said Brad Adams.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.—Climate Rights International recently released a report on Texas oil company Sable Offshore’s Las Flores Pipeline— the same pipeline that ruptured back during the 2015 Refugio Oil Spill.
They’re urging the state of California to take action.
The report is called “Crude Awakening: Why California Must Retire The Las Flores Pipeline,” and it comes at a critical time.
In the report, Climate Rights International is urging the state to enforce all environmental laws, including a requirement for full environmental review and a public process that ensures scientists and communities are included in the decision making.
We’ve reached out to Sable to see what their timeline is for restarting oil production on the central coast and are waiting to hear back.