A pair of pumpjacks at work in Kern County. (Photo: Christopher Halloran, via Shutterstock)OPINION: As Gov. Newsom addressed California residents in the annual State of the State, he seemed to skirt some big issues plaguing the state, but he didn’t miss the opportunity to double down on his recent and harmful energy policies restricting California energy production.
A pumpjack in California's San Joaquin Valley. (Photo: Mark Geistweite, via Shutterstock)The Trump administration is to opening up 1.2 million acres for oil and gas drilling across California from the Central Valley to the coast, targeting eight counties — Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, San Luis Obisbo, Santa Barbara, Tulare, and Ventura.T he plan follows an earlier move by the federal Bureau of Land Management to issue leases for oil and gas drilling on roughly 800,000 acres in 11 counties.
The silhouette of a pmpjack at sunset. The jacks can remove five to 40 liters of crude oil wuith each stroke. (Photo: Ronnie Chua, via Shutterstock)Once again, the stage is being set for a multi-pronged battle in California between environmentalists and the Trump administration. On May 9, the federal government announced plans to open 725,500 acres of public lands on California’s Central Coast and the Bay Area to new oil and gas drilling.
A tanker passes by two oil exploration rigs off the coast of Huntington Beach. (Photo: Ana Phelps)The rubber is hitting the road, the gloves are coming off and California leaders are suiting up for battle. At least, figuratively. When the Trump Administration announced that it would commence offshore oil drilling across all national waters — including six locations in California — federal agencies struck against decades of bipartisan environmental policy in California.
Smokestacks on a geothermal power plant near the Salton Sea in Southern California's Imperial Valley.(Photo: Tom Grundy, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Over 35 years ago, I came to pick up my fifth and third grade sons from school and found them making “Santa beards” out of the foaming toxic waste that flooded their playground. Later that night, I watched my youngest have a seizure at the dinner table as a result. Ever since, my Inland Valley community and I have been fighting for our right to live and breathe without getting sick.
A smog-tinged view in black and white of Century City, Beverly Hills and West Los Angeles. (Photo: Trekandshoot, via Shutterstock)It’s a familiar fight in the Capitol: Oil companies and their allies say jobs and Californians’ ability to get from place to place at reasonable cost are at stake, which can have a dramatic impact on lower income workers. Environmentalist say the future of the planet is what it’s all about, starting in California. Ultimately, the issue may be decided by millions of voters — not Sacramento lawmakers.
Oil rigs in a Kern County oil field. (Photo: Christopher Halloran)OPINION: What do comedian Stephen Colbert, the Washington Post editorial board and Gov. Jerry Brown have in common? They recognize the necessity of hydraulic fracturing. In an interview on The Late Show with Colbert last November to promote his award-winning movie, Spotlight, actor and anti-fracking activist Mark Ruffalo scoffed, “What the hell. Who thought of fracking?” Without missing a beat, Colbert replied, “People who need oil. They’re called Americans.”
Pumpjacks in a Kern County oil field, November 2013. (Photo: Christopher Halloran)OPINION: The Paris talks brought into clearer focus just how many so-called moderate Democrats who sided with the oil industry this year re out of touch with their caucus, their party and their state. This small tribe of transactional politicians, whose campaign coffers have been filled with oil company dollars for years, did the shameless bidding of Big Oil once again this year, failing to protect Californians from greater environmental harm.
As rush hour approaches, traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge. (Photo: Frontpage)OPINION: The oil company partisans and their legislative allies apparently failed to read past the first five pages of the bill. Buried in the back pages of SB 350 is a full codification of the 2030 and 2050 climate targets that the industry thought it defeated, along with a powerful new set of directives to state energy agencies to meet those targets.
Senate Leader Kevin de Leon and Gov. Jerry Brown, left, announce scaling back SB 350. (Photo AP/Rich Pedroncelli)To the surprise of few in the Capitol, the heart of landmark legislation to cut California’s gasoline use in half was gutted under fierce pressure from the oil industry – leaving a weakened bill and an angry Gov. Brown. An impassioned Brown said Wednesday he would push for new ways to cut climate-changing greenhouse gases during the remaining three years of his governorship, either through legislation, executive orders — or both.