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According to the California Energy Commission, California produces only about 37.2 percent of the petroleum it uses. In 2007, the state spent nearly $50 billion for gasoline and $9.7 billion for diesel. Petroleum-based fuels account for 96 percent of the state's transportation needs. The tremendous and growing cost of oil imports was addressed by the Committee, with Ms. Green questioning the assumption that the U.S. will be able to continue to borrow overseas money for the next 30 years, while running a 600 billion dollar a year trade deficit primarily due to imported oil. More important, a Los Angeles Basin Crude Oil Supply study forecast shows that by 2020 over 80% of California oil will be imported from foreign countries. 
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Thursday, April 10, 2014
SOS Testifies at Hearing in Washington DC
Friday, April 4, 2014
Santa Barbara Nonprofit to Testify at Congressional Hearing in Washington DC on California Energy Independence
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Santa Barbara Nonprofit to Testify
at Congressional Hearing in Washington DCon California Energy Independence:Domestic Opportunities to Reverse California's Growing Dependence on Foreign Oil
SANTA BARBARA, CA - Alice Green, a Member of the Board of Directors of SOS (Stop Oil Seeps) California, has been invited to testify before the House Committee on Natural Resources in Washington on April 4th about the "domestic opportunities to reverse California's growing dependence on foreign oil." Ms. Green, an environmental consultant with an undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of Pennsylvania and a Masters Degree in Marine Resource Management from Texas A&M, writes a blog (www.californiaoil.blogspot. com) relating to offshore energy production, policy issues and resource management.
In her testimony, Ms. Green will outline the environmental damage caused by natural oil and gas seep pollution in the Santa Barbara Channel and the economic impact from the unrealized revenue that basically washes away every day. She will also summarize current knowledge surrounding the potential benefits of developing the offshore oil and gas reserves, referencing the fact-based research in the SOS California Supporting Documentation provided to the committee. Topics will include:
- How peer-reviewed studies have proven that extraction of oil and gas resources is responsible for reductions in coastal oil seepage pollution, resulting in cleaner beaches and cleaner air in Central California
- How exploration and production of offshore reserves can be conducted in an environmentally safe manner
- A forecast that by 2020 California will be importing 80% of its oil from foreign sources
- How expanded offshore production in California would dramatically reduce the impact of oil imports and oil tanker transportation in California waters
- A 2013 study by the California Economic Forecast which outlines how permanently lifting the moratoria and allowing production in state and federal waters offshore California would produce broad economic benefits including more than 100,000 high-paying technical new jobs
Testimony and Supporting Documentation will also provide information on energy projects proposed for the OCS and state waters along the Santa Barbara County coast.
- How potential new offshore oil and gas royalty revenues can fund the transition to a renewable energy infrastructure
CONTACT:
Judy Rossiter
805.969.9259
SOS California is a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to reducing the environmental impact of natural gas and oil seep pollution upon our ocean, our beaches and our air quality through education and awareness.
Friday, February 7, 2014
Bruce Allen Tribute Gathering at The Santa Barbara University Club
In December 2013 our beloved friend and colleague Bruce Allen passed away suddenly. Bruce was a great inspiration to us all, a man with a brilliant mind and a warm heart who's legacy will continue to live through his great accomplishments. In the beginning of 2014 we gathered at the Santa Barbara University Club for our annual holiday party and to celebrate Bruce's life. Here are some pictures from the night.
Dana Hansen (left) & Elizabeth Foster
Byron & Judy Ishkanian, Jim Nelson, Judy Rossiter, Alice Green
Suzi Schomer (left), Debbie Saucedo and Judy Ishkanian
Co-Founder Lad Handelman with guests
The food is always great and plentiful!
Lad Handelman with Judy Hill and Carol Kallman
Bruce Allen Tribute
We love you and miss you Bruce!
Thursday, September 26, 2013
LIFE'S A ...SON OF A BEACH!!!
What’s
that black stuff on my feet? Seep Oil? Natural? Whatever – what can it do to
me?
SOS
documented in our last blog how natural oil seeps can negatively impact the
wild creatures who live in and around them.
What about the human creatures?
As
we stated, the first thing we notice as beachgoers is the tar on our feet – but
how does that tar get from the seeps to our feet?
State
and federal agencies, as well as UCSB researchers, study this phenomenon on a
regular basis. Photos from the U.S.
Geological Survey (USGS 2013) and the California Department of Conservation can
help connect the dots (or tar-balls!).
Take this one, for instance ->
As the caption states, “This
natural oil seep, at the base of a sea cliff near Santa Barbara, covers the
beach sand with an impressive build-up of black asphaltum. This tar-like
substance is eroded by waves to form pesky tar-balls, which are carried by
longshore currents to other beaches, miles away.”
Our
studies support the hypothesis that natural oil seepage from sea floor vents
are responsible for the majority of tar-ball accumulation on Southern
California beaches. Oil fingerprinting provides the crucial tool to verify of
the origin of this deposited oil (USGS 2013).
Natural
crude-oil seeps are common in regions of petroleum-bearing formations. This
natural contamination may result in human exposures to crude oil and subsequent
associated health risks. Risks from natural contamination sources are often
referred to as background risks (Sullivan 2011).
However, researchers on human health impacts
use different terminology to refer to risks from spilled oil. Health risks associated with exposures
resulting from accidental releases of chemicals into the environment are
referred to as additional or incremental risks (Sullivan 2011). Why should
there be a difference in terminology if the oil itself is the same crude?
We certainly share the
tar-ball experience with those past inhabitants of our coast. A recent Edhat
posting by Paul Costales was entitled “Tar: A Local Beach Tradition” and
highlighted what surfers go through when trying to find that perfect wave.
While writing about the lack of waves, he added that “… as the flat days
add up to weeks, our natural tar seeps compound our frustration too. As if
having a flat surf session isn't bad enough, you also have to get covered in
tar and spend a lot of time getting it off. Other ocean-goers are taking some
big hits too. Just last Friday a friend was swimming at Goleta Beach and was
covered in more tar then he's ever been covered in from oceangoing along our
local coast. Goleta Beach isn't typically considered one of the really tarry
beaches around here either. The tarriest beaches, not surprisingly, have some
tarry names, Tar Pits and Coal Oil Point (Sands and Deveraux) being the most
popular tar prone surf beaches in these parts.” http://www.edhat.com/site/tidbit.cfm?id=2603
So
tar-balls on the beach are definitely a conversation topic for surfers. Do they
also encounter oil in the water while surfing?
As
a UCSB Sophomore, Joey Krueger was interviewed for an article in the Santa
Barbara News-Press (Allison 2008). The mechanical engineering student and
surfer was quoted as saying “It’s pretty bad out here. When I go out surfing
for 1 hour I can literally feel the tar and oil in the back of my throat. I
actually get a sore throat if I’ve been surfing too long."
While
we don’t ingest oil while we’re in the water, at least not in the quantities
that marine mammals and birds do, it can get on our skin - and people who spend
time in the water definitely start to feel similar impacts to those creatures.
We
also inhale the fumes.Inhalation is the primary route of exposure for
the VOCs (White 2011). One of these VOCs is methane. The natural gas and oil seeps
beneath the Santa Barbara Channel cause gas to escape from the ocean floor and
float to the surface like carbonated soda bubbles, releasing methane, a potent
greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere.
Santa
Barbara County’s air quality has historically violated both state and federal
ozone standards. According to the county’s 2007 Clean Air Plan, offshore
natural gas and oil seeps is a major source of the county’s air pollution and
responsible for putting more than 22 tons of reactive organic gases into Santa
Barbara’s air every day. By comparison, all of the motor vehicle trips in Santa
Barbara County produce 18 tons of hydrocarbons each day. However the 2010 update of the Clean Air Plan
evaluates only human-generated sources of air pollution. Is the evaluation of
air quality complete without acknowledging the emissions from natural
seeps?
Mr. Costales
also wrote about the impact of Venoco’s activities near Coal Oil Point. “It is said that our local offshore drilling
has reduced pressure on the oil and gas fields allowing the natural seeps to
slow down. Local oil operator Venoco, has several "tents" they keep
out over some of the offshore seeps. They collect oil and gas bubbling up from
the ocean floor and pipe it to their onshore facility. It seems oil companies get
a bad rap from a lot of folks, but in this Venoco should be thanked for
collecting all of that junk that is going to end up on our beaches and turning
it into something we heat our homes with.”
Why should we continue to be impacted by the oil
seeps when there is a Sole-ution?
References
Allison, B. 2008.
What About Our Oil? Santa Barbara
News-Press. August 28, 2008.
Costales,
P. 2013
SBAPCD 2011
Sullivan, M. 1991.
Evaluation of Environmental and Human Health Risk from Crude-Oil
Contamination. Journal of Petroleum
Technology, Volume 43. Number 1. Society of Petroleum Engineers.
USGS 2013.
White, L. 2011
Saturday, September 7, 2013
HOT TIME, SUMMER IN THE CITY, BOTTOM OF MY FEET GETTING OILY AND STICKY
Ahh…summer! Time for
relaxation…outdoor concerts, backyard barbeques… and the beach!
Best thing about Santa Barbara…the
beaches. But wait – what is on the bottom of my feet? It’s black, greasy: it’s
oil! Where did that come from? And will
it hurt me?
Keep reading - we’ve got the
answers. And if you read California Oil, you know we know how
to reduce the oil on the beaches and give you back your beach day.
How did that oil get from the
seeps to your feet?
Santa
Barbara offshore seeps pollute beaches from Los Angeles to Monterey. The natural oil and gas seeps beneath the
Santa Barbara Channel cause oil to drift to the ocean’s surface, producing a
persistent oil slick that’s usually carried north and west by ocean currents,
generally coming ashore between Santa Barbara and Gaviota. As the oil rises to
the surface and floats, it coagulates and biodegrades into tar. This is the
same tar that is found on the beaches along the Santa Barbara coastline – and
on your feet!As a result of weather and ocean conditions, the greatest amount
of tar appears on Santa Barbara beaches during the summer months.
To
the dismay of local beach-goers, sticky globules of tar lap up onto our
coastline every day. This tar is an annoyance to many of us and is often
perceived to be a man-made pollutant. In fact, the tar results from the
aforementioned natural seeps that have been spewing oil and gas into the Santa
Barbara Channel for centuries. Our beaches lie along the second largest natural
seep area in the world – a field with 2,100 active seeps.
You
are right to be worried about impacts of the oil that’s on your feet. But you only
come in contact with oil seeps in a peripheral way. The creatures that live in
the marine environment are exposed continually, and it’s important to
understand how the seeps impact these species that are so impact our lives –
and are so important to our ecosystem.
It is important to note that much of our knowledge of specific impacts of oil on marine and coastal species comes from studies on oil spill impacts. We need to emphasize that the oil that is seeping naturally is crude oil - no different from the oil that spilled in Santa Barbara’s harbor in 1969. The seep oil comes from the same oil-bearing formations. Each year the beaches of Santa Barbara County are impacted by a quantity of oil equivalent to that 1969 spill –and that quantity is released through seepage.
It is important to note that much of our knowledge of specific impacts of oil on marine and coastal species comes from studies on oil spill impacts. We need to emphasize that the oil that is seeping naturally is crude oil - no different from the oil that spilled in Santa Barbara’s harbor in 1969. The seep oil comes from the same oil-bearing formations. Each year the beaches of Santa Barbara County are impacted by a quantity of oil equivalent to that 1969 spill –and that quantity is released through seepage.
Our
coastal waters are home to rich and diverse marine environments. Point Conception is often identified as the
transition point between two biogeograhic provinces: the colder Oregonian
Province and the warmer California Province. Because of the confluence of these
two bioregions, the areas offshore Santa Barbara support a great diversity of
marine species, many of which are extremely rare and afforded special
protection under federal and state law.
These include over 195 species of birds that use the open water, shore,
or island habitats in the area; at least 33 species of cetaceans (whales and
dolphins); 7 species of pinnipeds (seals and sea lions); and the southern sea
otter. All can be negatively impacted by
encounters with oil released from seeps.
Oil
that has entered the water from seeps, in general, can have a smothering effect
on marine life, fouling feathers and fur. It is a toxic poison that birds and
mammals often ingest while trying to clean themselves. Fish absorb it through
direct contact and through their gills.
Even
when the oil does not kill, it can have more subtle and long-lasting negative
effects. For example, it can damage fish eggs, larva and young – wiping out
generations. It also can bio-accumulate up through the food chain as predators
(including humans) eat numbers of fish that have sub-lethal amounts of oil
stored in their bodies.
Although seep-related fatalities are rare, low-level hydrocarbon exposure might be a significant stressor for animals living in seep areas. Systemic poisoning from chronic exposure could weaken the animals, making them more vulnerable to disease (SB County Energy Division).
Birds
Oil
can be especially harmful to our coastal birds and seabirds—particularly diving
birds that must get their nourishment from the water. With birds such as common
loons and western grebes, the oil interferes with the birds’ ability to
maintain their body temperature, often resulting in death from hypothermia by
reducing or destroying the insulation and waterproofing properties of their
feathers. Oiled birds also become easy prey, as their feathers being matted by
oil make them less able to fly away. They also lose body weight as their
metabolism tries to combat low body temperature.
Seep
oil has a far greater impact on bird populations that are aggregated during
breeding or migration than those that are widely dispersed at sea. It is likely
that the cumulative effect of numerous “small” spills and chronic pollution,
such as through constant offshore oil seepage, has had a greater effect on
seabird populations than the rarer large spills (Oil in the Sea 2003).
The
Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network each year cleans approximately 50 birds
that have been oiled by natural seeps. But higher seep flow volumes can impact much
larger numbers. The International Bird Rescue Research Center, in March 2012,
reported the oiling of 97 common murres – from one high flow event that was
traced to the Santa Barbara seeps. As their blog stated, “Unlike the birds we hear about during high profile oil spills, these birds are being oiled by a natural oil seep along Southern California coast, so public awareness is much more limited, The danger, however, to the birds is identical."
Marine Mammals
Recent
studies on possible effects of oil on marine mammals have focused on the
behavioral effects, thermal effects, and physiological effects due to contact,
inhalation, and ingestion of oil. Oil slicks on the water’s surface are
particularly dangerous to fur bearing marine mammals
The
lethargic behavior of oiled seals following the Exxon Valdez oil spill was not
attributed to blanketing effects from a catastrophic spill, but rather to brain
damage from inhalation of volatile fumes, since they breathe just above the
water’s surface. This was suggested as being especially threatening with less
weathered oil on the calm waters and on haulouts early in the spill (Parks
Canada 1999). The seeps at Coal Oil
Point provide a constant supply of fresh oil and associated volatile fumes in
an area frequented by harbor seal and other pinnipeds.
Fur-Bearing
Marine Mammals
Fur-bearing
marine mammals such as sea otters and fur seals are especially vulnerable to
the effects of crude oil.
Fur seal pups drown if oil sticks to their flippers or to their bodies, and when it sticks to their fur it reduces or destroys the insulation of their wooly fur (called lanugo) and causes hypothermia. Adult fur seals have blubber and would not suffer from hypothermia if oiled.
In California, the sea otter population was listed
as "threatened” species. Sea otters are particularly vulnerable to oiling.
Oil may compromise a sea otter’s fur coat thus hampering its ability to keep
warm. Sea otters may also groom and ingest oil trapped in their fur or
inhale volatile components of freshly released oil, as from an ongoing seep.
Whether from ingestion or inhalation, otters exposed to oil may become sick and
die (University of Alaska 1995).
Different
from whales, sea lions, and most seals, the sea otters do not have a layer of
blubber to protect them from cold water. Instead, these marine mammals rely
entirely on their very dense fur (300,000 hairs per square inch) for
insulation. Oil compromises this protective coat and even a small oiled area of
their fur can cause hypothermia and potentially death of the sea otter.
Cetaceans
Twice each year, from
December to May, the population of the California, or eastern North Pacific,
gray whale passes through southern California on its migration between breeding
and calving lagoons in Mexico and summer feeding grounds off Alaska. During
this journey, most gray whales stay close to the coastline and pass through the
Santa Barbara Channel and the Santa Maria Basin—areas where most of southern
California’s natural oil and natural gas seeps are located.
Studies
have shown that cetacean skin is nearly impenetrable to even the highly
volatile components in oil. However, the toxic, volatile fractions in fresh
crude oils could irritate and damage cetacean soft tissues, such as the mucous
membranes of the eyes and airways and the effects could be as severe as death
in extreme cases.
Oil
could also adhere to the fringed baleen plates that gray whales use to filter
their food, blocking the flow of water and interfering with feeding. Gray
whales are among the most vulnerable of the baleen whales to effects of
ingesting oil-contaminated prey or bottom sediments since they are mainly
bottom feeders.
While
we don’t ingest oil, it can get on our skin - and people who spend time in the
water definitely start to feel impacts that are similar to those experienced by
the creatures that live in it. Stay
tuned to our next August blog to see how seeps could impact you!
References
County of Santa Barbara
2002. Natural Oil Seeps and Oil Spills.
March 2002. County of Santa Barbara, Planning and Development, Energy Division.
Geraci, J.R., and D.J. St.
Aubin, 1987. Effects of offshore oil and gas development on marine mammals and
turtles, in Long-Term Environmental Effects of Offshore Oil and Gas
Development, D.F. Boesch and N.N. Rabalais, eds., Elsevier Applied Science,
London.
Hunt, G.L. Jr., 1987,
Offshore oil development and seabirds: The present status of knowledge and
long-term research needs, in Long-Term Environmental Effects of Offshore Oil
and Gas Development, D.F. Boesch and N.N. Rabalais, eds., Elsevier Applied
Science, London.
International Bird Rescue
Research Center 2012.
Loughlin, T.R. (ed.), 1994, Marine
Mammals and the Exxon Valdez, Academic Press, San Diego
Minerals Management Service
(MMS) 2008.
MMS.gov/omm/pacific/enviro/calseaotter.htm
Straughan, D., 1976,
“Sublethal effects of natural chronic exposure to petroleum in the marine
environment,” American Petroleum Institute Publication No. 4280.
Sunday, June 30, 2013
SHAKE-N-BAKE
And they say California doesn’t have
seasons…
Johnny Carson once described the
California seasons – he said they are earthquake, fire, and mudslide. That was
during a particularly rainy winter, after a particularly bad fire season, when
the rain washed away mud from fire-scorched hillsides, then poured it through
houses in Malibu and into the Pacific Ocean.
In Santa Barbara during the last week
of May 2013, we experienced a combination of seasons: fire and earthquake.
·
The
White Fire started Memorial Day in the Santa Ynez Mountains, and burned nearly
2,000 acres – and ruined my summer camping plans!
·
The
following Thursday, a 4.8-magnitude earthquake rocked the coast – epicenter was
offshore, about 3 miles west of Isla Vista, near University of California,
Santa Barbara (UCSB) (2013).
We call this Shake-N-Bake – people
have even been heard, during really hot weather and those famous Santa Barbara
sundowners – saying “Uh Oh – earthquake weather.”
These people are JOKING – or
expressing an oddness in the air.
THERE IS NO CONNECTION BETWEEN WEATHER
AND EARTHQUAKES.
BUT… we at SOS said “Uh Oh!” – for
another reason. Because there IS a connection between earthquakes and seep
flow. And this quake occurred in an area where the seeps are most apparent.
Venoco Inc., received an inquiry
regarding the most recent earthquake off Isla Vista. Their staff geologist
responded by saying that the 4.8 magnitude
event that occurred on May 29 at 07:38 PDT was a normal tectonic event (Venoco
2013).
His comments covered a number of issues
regarding seeps, seismic activity, and oil production that we want to address
in this blog.
1.
California
is located in one of the most active tectonic regions in the world. Earthquakes
are a common occurrence in California, including the Santa Barbara Channel.
There is an established history of significant earthquakes that have occurred
in the Santa Barbara area (e.g. 1812, 1883, 1925, 1941, 1978) (Venoco 2013).
So what is the connection between
seeps and earthquakes?
According to Dr. Ed Keller, professor
in the Departments of Earth Science and Geography, and in the Environmental
Studies Program at UCSB, earthquakes in the seep areas are expected to occur,
and can increase seep flow, as follows:
- Earthquakes in the mid-to high-magnitude 6 range are moderate events, but we can expect larger earthquakes at some time in the future.
- In the earthquake of August 13, 1978, which was a magnitude 5.9 event that occurred offshore off Goleta point…the acceleration, or intensity of shaking, caused the Marine Science Building to shift about one inch on its foundation.
- Santa Barbara and the Channel are part of the so-called ‘earthquake hot zone.’
- Frequent moderate to large earthquakes characterize this zone.
- The most serious seismic hazard is in the Santa Barbara Channel.
- Once an earthquake occurs in the Channel, we would soon know about it (Keller 2008).
And we did!
A 1977 State Lands Commission (SLC)
staff report echoes Dr. Keller’s findings. The report stated that intense seepage
frequently occurs near intersections of faults.
With respect to seismicity and seepage, SLC staff reported that:
- A band of high seismicity coincides with the southern extent of the coastal Santa Barbara oil and tar seep province.
- Active faults occur within several miles of the shoreline along better than 90% of the coast between Point Arguello and San Diego.
- Following the 1925 Santa Barbara earthquake, the Santa Barbara Channel was reportedly covered by thick patches of oil.
- It
is known that a very widespread slick covered a large area of the eastern
Santa Barbara Channel during early October 1974, and fouled the eastern
channel beaches on October 3, 4, and 5.
- There
were also reports of widespread slicks in 1975 and 1976 (SLC 1977).
James M. Galloway, a geologist with
the Pacific Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Region of the federal agency now
called Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM), stated that “Santa Barbara
County is more highly vulnerable to a marine biological mega-catastrophe than
virtually any other location on the planet. No other metropolis sits adjacent
to so many sea floor fractures which overlay such huge subterranean oil
deposits. Local geologists agree Santa Barbara will experience larger seismic
activity. Should a large quake occur offshore, even no stronger than the 1925
quake, history may repeat itself and as reported by early sea-goers, ‘the
entire sea will [again] be black with oil’.”
So we have shown that the Santa Barbara Channel is naturally
a seismically active area and that there is a connection between earthquakes
and increased seepage.
A misconception
still exists - that oil production could cause an earthquake. To understand how unlikely this is, one must
understand the forces and distances involved. Again, from Venoco’s geologist:
2. Oil production at South Ellwood had no
impact or relation to the (May 29, 2013 earthquake) event. The subject
earthquake occurred at a depth of approximately 5 miles (>25,000 feet).
Production at South Ellwood occurs at depths less than 1 mile. The lateral
distance of separation between the platform and the epicenter (surface location)
was approximately 2 miles (Venoco 2013).
Venoco’s geologist
goes on to reference a targeted studied (that he called the most complete and
only study to date) by Plains Exploration & Production Company (PXP) of
their Inglewood Oil Field. Before-during-and-after
measurements of vibration and seismicity, including analysis of data from the
permanently installed California Institute of Technology accelerometer at the
Baldwin Hills, indicated that their activities had no detectable effects on
vibration, and did not induce seismicity (earthquakes). The report stated that any effects of oil
field operations are much shallower than the zones typically associated with
earthquake epicenters along the Newport-Inglewood Fault zone (PXP 2012).
But this
blog entry is called Shake-N-Bake. How do seismicity and seeps relate to our
impending fire season – and seasons to come?
Venoco’s
geologist makes the connection between their Ellwood Field production and
seeps.
3.
One
of the significant impacts from Ellwood production is the reduction of the
natural seeps. A UCSB professor completed a study on that issue several
years ago (Venoco 2013).
We’ve
already shown in previous blog posts that an economic benefit could be realized
by Santa Barbara county services from tax revenue and royalties from that
production. Mark Schniepp, head of the Goleta-based California Economic
Forecast, has stated that “We need a new (job) engine.” Schniepp said if
California used its vast, untapped oil and natural gas deposits during the next
40 years, it would have billions of dollars in revenue and hundreds of
thousands of new jobs (Santa Barbara View 2012).
One of the
services that could be supported is fire protection, and we would ALL benefit.
A March 2012
Santa Barbara Independent article addressed Santa Barbara County funding
struggles with regard to the Fire Department.
It stated that “As Santa Barbara County heads into fire season — with
high winds and hot temps passing through town this week — officials have been
trying to put out their own fire that’s been burning a hole in the
county’s budget.
Capital needs are growing, staffing has been reduced, and
on the heels of a report that says County Fire faces a $1.8-million deficit for
this coming fiscal year to keep services at their current level, a gap that
will grow to almost $15 million four years from now, the Board of Supervisors
decided to shift money around to aid the ailing department in the form of an
increased allocation of property tax revenue. …The problem, of course, is that
when money is given to one agency, it is taken from somewhere else.”
This issue was addressed more recently in a Santa Barbara
News-Press article published on June 13, 2013.
The a article stated that County firefighters could take longer to
respond to emergencies if staff reductions presented to the Santa Barbara
County Board of Supervisors are approved. The article quoted Michael Dyer,
County Fire Chief, whose opinion is that budget cuts would reduce the
department’s response and ability to address critical situations.
We all know
what this fire season has brought thus far.
Why should any of our county
departments be limited...as we continue to Shake-N-Bake … and seep?
REFERENCES
Galloway,
J.M. Geologist, Pacific OCS Region,
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.
Independent
2012. Fighting Fire with Cash.
County Reworks Money Streams to Help Underfunded Department.
Thursday, May 24, 2012. By Chris Meagher.
Keller 2008. History of Santa Barbara
Earthquakes. Dr. Ed Keller, UCSB Dr. Ed Keller Department of Earth
Science, UCSB. Santa Barbara News-Press, August 18, 2008.
PXP 2012.
Hydraulic Fracturing Study PXP Inglewood Oil Field. Prepared
for Plains Exploration & Production Company Los Angeles County,
Department of Regional Planning. Prepared by Cardno ENTRIX (www.cardnoentrix.com)
State Lands Commission. (SLC) 1977.
California Offshore Gas, Oil and Tar Seeps.
Santa Barbara News Press 2013. County
Fire Could See Cuts. Thursday June 13, 2013. By Emily Parker. http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/article.jsp?Section=LOCAL&ID=566722047909167136&Archive=true
Santa Barbara View 2012. Santa Barbara
Business Beat, Ray Estrada. November 9, 2012.
Venoco 2013. Personal communication
with Lisa Rivas., Government Relations Manager.
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