Each facility would also have to draft a risk management plan that would examine the corrosion potential of pipes and other safety threats.
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The leak occurred at a natural gas field near Los Angeles on October 23, officials said, and has been steadily leaking ever since. But the report was not an urgent call to action, as it should have been.
The leak isn’t tidy, an expert explained to Lobet: The escaping gas can’t simply be siphoned off. And as the Los Angeles Times detailed earlier this week, the pressure of the escaping gas makes it impossible to stop the leak by filling the well from the top.
Under the emergency proclamation, the governor’s Office of Emergency Services will direct any state resources necessary to respond, and the office will also provide regular updates to residents. EDF has launched a digital counter that is tabulating the amount of gas the Aliso Canyon facility is leaking. More than 2000 households have been relocated with more than 1000 still waiting. The Aliso Canyon facility, with a capacity of 86 billion cubic feet, is one of the largest in the nation. The gas leak represents up to 25 percent of methane emissions in California each day. Additionally, the Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources, the California Public Utilities Commission, the California Air Resources Board and the California Energy Commission will submit to the Governor’s Office a report that assesses the long-term viability of natural gas storage facilities in California. Methane is an incredibly potent greenhouse gas; it traps 86 times more heat over a 20-year period than carbon dioxide does. One four-bedroom home in Northridge is advertised on Craigslist for $8,500 as a “Huge Estate House Available, Perfect for Families Affected by Gas Leak”.
Southern California Gas Co, which operated the well that was the site of the methane leak, was trying to stop it by drilling a relief well to reach a damaged pipeline, then injecting fluids and heavy mud into it.
“Our focus remains on quickly and safely stopping the leak and minimising the impact to our neighbours in Porter Ranch”, she said in a statement.
The gas company was not moving fast enough for Gov. Brown, who has already been accused by Porter Ranch residents of not taking action sooner.
Brown on Wednesday ordered a series of regulatory and oversight measures from seven state agencies, including an incident command structure at the site to coordinate local, state and federal response.
In declaring the emergency, Brown noted the widespread disruption the gas leak has caused and reiterated the state’s efforts to help fix the problem.
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The leak, which has been ongoing since October 2015, gained limited media attention after environmental and public health advocate Erin Brockovich declared it “a catastrophe the scale of which has not been seen since the 2010 BP oil spill”.
