Quakes and Well Casings

Things have been shaking in these parts lately. The big quakes in the Ridgecrest-Trona area, far east from our local San Andres fault, have snapped large water well casings like toothpicks, according to a hydrogeologist in that area. Chevron just spilled 800,000 gallons of oil and water (240,000 gallons of oil) into ravines and creeks in the Cymric oil field between Bakersfield and the San Andres fault. What would happen to all their high pressure steam oil wells when the San Andres lets loose?

Santa Barbara has a hundred or so of these dangerous “steam wells” going through our drinking water aquifers, and three oil companies are now pressuring county authorities to let them drill several hundred more of these potential water-polluting wells. A big quake is due in our area. Is it time to create more pollution risks to our water supply and air? Should we be backing off oil and gas development and building up solar and wind energy production at these oil facilities?

Contact your county supervisor soon and tell them to stop more oil production that endangers our water, air, health, and climate. Stop the Cat Canyon oil projects and dumping more waste into our aquifers. Stop Exxon’s oil truck transport in the South County and the attendant new oil pipeline that will run past my neighborhood and elementary school. Stop the new oil fracking projects on our federal lands that are being pushed by the White House.

What kind of world are we leaving for our children?