A massive natural gas leak in southern California is raising questions about whether more regulation could have kept thousands of people in their homes and tens of thousands of metric tons of methane in the ground.
A massive natural gas leak erupted at a well in Aliso Canyon, outside of Los Angeles, in late October. The leak has sent an estimated 79,000 metric tons of methane into the atmosphere, according to the Environmental Defense Fund, the greenhouse gas equivalent of burning more than 745 million gallons of gasoline. The group estimates the leak has wasted about $12.3 million of natural gas.
More than 2,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in the nearby Porter Ranch neighborhood.
The leak won’t be stopped anytime soon. Southern California Gas Co., the operator of the well, says the leak won’t be able to be fully stopped until February or March. The company is drilling a relief well, but more work has to be done before it can become operational.
The leak is coming from a hole in the pipe going to the well underground, and some environmentalists say the leak could have been prevented if a safety valve had been installed on the well.
Josh Sonnenfeld, associate director of the Sierra Club’s Our Wild America campaign, said Southern California Gas didn’t have a safety valve installed on the well because it wasn’t required. If that regulation was in place, the leak wouldn’t have happened, he said.
“The Porter Ranch facility is the fourth-largest gas storage facility in the country and we don’t require safety valves for that? That’s crazy,” Sonnenfeld said.
He said the Environmental Protection Agency has a chance to strengthen regulations about methane leaks this year as it considers new regulations on oil and natural gas air pollution.
Methane is the top component of natural gas and is a much heavier greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Though short-lived, methane is 25 times more potent. Many scientists blame greenhouse gases for driving manmade climate change.
Environmental groups have pointed to the methane leak as an example of what happens when infrastructure ages and government doesn’t hold companies accountable for making sure their work is safe.
“It’s just another reinforcement for us in California about how poorly the oil and gas is being regulated here,” Sonnenfeld said. “We’re feeling like no one has really been looking out for us.”
The EPA currently is leaving the leak to the California state and local authorities. The agency has begun a preliminary investigation into the incident by requesting information about the well and how it operates.
“After completing its review of this information, and in consultation with the state and local regulators already active on the scene, EPA will determine the appropriate next steps,” the agency said.
Southern California Gas is drilling a relief well that must go almost 8,000 feet below the surface to reach the natural gas reservoir.
As of Monday, the company had drilled about 4,800 feet into the earth to complete the third phase of its five-phase operation. The plan is to intercept the leaking well and then pump the gas out of the relief well, where it can be easily controlled.
The company then would seal the leaking well.
“We are working tirelessly, on multiple fronts, to stop the leak as quickly and safely as possible,” the company said in a statement posted on its website.
But, while the company works to end the leak, thousands of people are concerned about potential negative health effects from being near the leak. They’re also worried about other leaks affecting the Southern California area, Sonnenfeld said.
Thousands of people in the Los Angeles area live near oil and gas wells, and Sonnenfeld said the environmentally conscious Californians are giving serious thought about the drilling future of the area.
“Nobody wants to live near that. No one wants to be breathing this stuff in,” he said.
