An ad in the print version of last week’s Santa Barbara Independent entitled “An Inconvenient Truth” shows a wave of “truth” swamping a Water Guardian. It’s offensive that opponents of Measure P who want the right to expand risky oil extraction using the most greenhouse-gas-intensive forms of oil production in the world are making light of global warming with this ad.
Climate change is real. Scientists connected it to the drought we are suffering right now. Sea levels have already risen eight inches and will rise many feet this century.
Santa Maria Energy’s recently approved project for 136 oil wells will generate emissions equivalent to adding 17,000 cars to Santa Barbara County roads. And the company wants to drill over 7,000 additional wells, which would be like adding a million cars to our roads. This is the wrong direction for our county. Vote “yes” on Measure P.