Real-life Impact of Idle and Orphan Wells
Larry The Farmer
Larry Saldaña is an organic farmer in the Central Valley who has fought for justice from governmental authorities since an idle well spewed crude oil over his 2.5-acre farm earlier this year. Nine months after the initial incident, the oil driller has still refused to provide proper compensation for the health, safety, and financial havoc they’ve caused Saldaña and his family. The company responsible is yet to face governmental accountability.
Real-life people like Larry are impacted by the irresponsibility of fossil fuel companies daily. Read more on his fight here:
Cleanup Clash
A local oil producer's case pending before Kern County and state regulators may test…
Hundreds of gallons of oil
Farm owner claims National Sequoia Inc. is to blame.
Calif.’s oil wind-down
The push to reduce oil production is resulting in a…
Toro Canyon Creek
Photo Credit: LA Times
A so-called “unpluggable” well has compromised the environmental safety and wildlife surrounding the Toro Canyon Creek in the Central Valley since the 1990s. First drilled in the late 19th century by Occidental Petroleum and Mining Co, this oil seepage well and faulty oil-water separator have caused multiple crude oil spills. Santa Barbara County has expended $3.72 million to address ongoing leaks.
Read more on how Central Coast Californians are paying to clean up after fossil fuel companies here:
County Funds Replacement System
Issue goes back to the 1880s, when Occidental Mining…
Toro Creek Cleanup
Bureaucrats Squabble While Contamination Spreads
There Will Be (Bad) Blood
Santa Barbara County DA Takes County Counsel to Court in Showdown …
Beverly Hills School District
Photo Credit: Cameron Kiszla
Nineteen unplugged wells sat idle across from Beverly Hills Unified School District’s property. After the drillers responsible for these wells filed for bankruptcy, the school district was coerced into spending millions of taxpayer dollars to plug the wells. Drillers filing for bankruptcy protection is a common way Californians can potentially get stuck paying the price of cleaning up after polluters.
Read more about Beverly Hills Unified School District’s idle wells here:
Beverly Hills Shells out $40M
Just in time for Thanksgiving, the city of Beverly Hills will finally complete its project…
See how idle and orphan wells are impacting Californians across the state:
State finds 27 oil wells leaking
Leaky oil wells are raising health and safety concerns in Kern County
State considering changes
Activists pushing state and regional regulators for a more robust response…
Six idled oil wells leak explosive methane
State and regional inspectors have found six idled oil wells leaking methane…
Abandoned Oil & Gas Wells Emit Carcinogens
The release of cancer-causing benzene and other toxic gases from sites in Pennsylvania…
California lets companies keep ‘dangerous’ oil wells
A new California law just signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom…
Gas wells leak explosive levels of methane
Some Bakersfield residents are concerned about potential…
Gas Companies are abandoning their wells
Just one orphaned site in California could have emitted more than 30 tons of methane…
Some oil field violations linger for years
Serious oil field violations flagged as many as four years ago by state regulators in Kern County remain unresolved…
Environmental groups talk about potential gas leak
45 orphaned as wells in the Morningstar neighborhood in East Bakersfield were found leaking…