‘I Can Smell a Rat’: Julia Louis-Dreyfus Blasts Texas Oil Company at Packed Town Hall in Santa Barbara

Hundreds Fill La Cumbre Junior High Auditorium to Question State Officials About Sable Offshore’s Plans to Restart Oil Operations in Santa Barbara Channel

Santa Barbara resident Julia-Louis Dreyfus expressed her distrust in Sable Offshore’s plans to restart oil operations at Thursday’s town hall meeting with state legislators and regulators at La Cumbre Junior High and at a press conference outside the Environmental Defense Center’s headquarters (above). | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

Astrologists say the March 13 Blood Moon was supposed to heighten emotions and push individuals into challenging, uncomfortable situations. Based on Thursday evening’s town hall about Sable Offshore’s oil pipeline — which started, after a star-studded press conference, with slide decks from state regulatory agencies and ended with an environmental rally of sorts and dramatic mass exodus — I’d say the astrologists were spot on. What was advertised as an informational meeting with eight state agencies that oversee Sable’s operations quickly became emotionally charged when the Environmental Defense Center’s Linda Krop and resident actor Julia Louis-Dreyfus were surprisingly called onto the stage to voice their opposition to the oil project.

Convened by State Senator Monique Limón and Assemblymember Gregg Hart, more than 500 people flooded into the La Cumbre Junior High auditorium in Santa Barbara at 4 p.m. sharp to hear more about the individual role of state agencies and legislators in regulating Sable Offshore’s plans to restart oil operations in the Santa Barbara Channel. Sable’s three offshore oil platforms and associated pipelines have been shut down since 2015, when unchecked pipeline corrosion and criminal negligence by then-owner Plains All American Pipeline caused the devastating Refugio Oil Spill.

State Senator Monique Limón (right) organized the meeting with Assemblymember Gregg Hart. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

Grant Mack from the Governor’s Office was also present following receipt of a March 3 letter from United States Senator Adam Schiff, Congressmember Salud Carbajal, and 21 other members of congress asking Governor Newsom to demand environmental review and a more transparent, public process. Notable regulators on the panel included Secretary Wade Crowfoot of the California Natural Resources Agency, who moderated the discussion, Chief Daniel Berlant from the Office of the State Fire Marshal, and Deputy Director Cassidy Teufel of the California Coastal Commission, which is involved in a legal battle with Sable Offshore over alleged unpermitted construction in the coastal zone.

The Coastal Commission has issued the company two cease-and-desist orders, the most recent of which has not been followed since its issuance on February 18. “This is the first time in the agency’s history that we’ve had a party blatantly ignore a cease-and-desist order like this,” Teufel said. “Overall, this continues to be an incredibly frustrating situation.”

Sable sued the Coastal Commission shortly after receiving the second cease-and-desist order, contending that their work along with the coastal zone does not warrant additional permits and that the commission is overreaching its jurisdiction. Attorney General Rob Bonta has been looped in on this situation, Senator Limón stated, in the hopes that he will “help us with enforcement issues.” The Environmental Defense Center, which has led the legal movement against Sable’s restart, has met with the Attorney General on this topic.

Cal Fire Chief Daniel Berlant was in the hot seat based on a state waiver his office granted to Sable in December because the pipelines at issue “do not have effective corrosion protection.” Cathodic protection is the standard corrosion control measure on most pipelines, but after the Refugio Oil Spill, it was discovered that cathodic protection is not possible on these pipelines. Berlant explained that the waiver implements an additional 67 monitoring and repair standards that “meet or exceed” what’s required under federal law. Much of his initial presentation was interrupted by questions from the crowd on this matter.

“To date, no waivers have been approved that do not have cathodic protection systems or for pipelines with similar cathodic protection concerns,” said Christine McMorrow, a spokesperson for Cal Fire, in a statement to the Independent days before Sable’s state waiver was granted. In other words, this was the first.

Hundreds filled the La Cumbre Junior High auditorium on Thursday night looking for answers about Sable’s restart plans. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

Chief Berlant also told the audience that permitting and violation issues with all other state agencies must be resolved before his office will sign off on a restart. “They need to agree that all rules have been followed,” he said.

While not present at the town hall, two federal agencies have begun conducting an environmental assessment of Sable’s restart plans to hopefully resolve a lawsuit filed against them by the Center for Biological Diversity for rubber-stamping the lease extensions for Sable’s offshore platforms in federal waters. If the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) find the possibility of significant impacts, a more comprehensive environmental impact statement may be required.

Sable is also still sorting out notices of violation with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board for unauthorized sediment discharge and additional environmental impacts.

The Environmental Defense Center’s Chief Counsel, Linda Krop, greets Julia Louis-Dreyfus at a press conference held before the town hall meeting. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

The other state agencies involved in the meeting were the California State Lands Commission, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response, the California Department of Conservation’s Geologic Energy Management Division, and California State Parks, who is negotiating new easements with Sable for a four-mile stretch of pipeline that runs through Gaviota State Park.

Along with the usual crowd of a few hundred environmental activists, marked by red T-shirts reading “Don’t Enable Sable,” more than 200 union-backed Sable employees also attended the event. For a fleeting moment, Sable supporters and red-shirted enviros sat cordially shoulder-to-shoulder, all Santa Barbara residents at heart. That moment didn’t last long.

When Senator Limón’s staff called to the stage the Environmental Defense Center’s chief counsel, Linda Krop — who hosted a star-studded press conference beforehand with state legislators, actors Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jane Fonda, and Ventura-based Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert, among others, outside the EDC’s headquarters — the town hall shifted gears from an info-session into a quasi-rally. Krop’s emotion-inciting words, followed by an angry, passionate speech from Louis-Dreyfus, put the room into a cacophony of cheers and jeers.

Despite pouring rain, Jane Fonda addresses the crowd at a press conference in front of the Environmental Defense Center before the town hall meeting. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

“I can smell a rat,” Seinfeld and Veep star Louis-Dreyfus began. “And this project is a rat.”

After laying out why she thinks Sable should not be trusted, Louis-Dreyfus pointed to the various notices of violation and cease-and-desist orders issued to the oil company and said, “This is not the behavior of a responsible operator!”

Many cheered. Nearly every Sable employee got up at once and left, their disappointment apparent.

More than 200 Sable employees showed up to support their company, but walked out during Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s anti-oil speech. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom

“Sable Offshore management, employees, contractors, labor, and supporters showed up today in good faith to participate in a town hall meeting where only government officials were on the agenda to present,” said Steve Rusch, Sable’s vice president of environmental and governmental affairs, in a statement. “Project opponents forced the moderators to give them dedicated time to present biased information and smear the project. The opponents’ self-serving fundraiser and rally was not an appropriate use of public resources.”

“Not one word was said about the working people,” a Sable employee and union member told the Independent after he walked out. “This is my home, too, and I’m going to fight, too…. Without this, we’re just unemployed.”

The next steps remain somewhat uncertain, and it’s unlikely that there will be additional opportunities for public input. Sable must resolve their permitting problems before being given the go-ahead to restart their oil operations, but it’s unclear how long this process could take. If Sable cannot get their platforms and pipelines pumping crude before 2026, previous owner ExxonMobil will have the ability to reacquire the assets. Whether the Attorney General decides to intervene on behalf of the state will be the next shoe to drop.

Editor’s Note: The story was updated to clarify that the Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board is the water board that issued Sable a notice of violation.

The Environmental Defense Center held a star-studded press conference in front of its downtown headquarters ahead of Thursday’s town hall at La Cumbre Junior High. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
The Environmental Defense Center held a star-studded press conference in front of its downtown headquarters ahead of Thursday’s town hall at La Cumbre Junior High. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
The Environmental Defense Center held a star-studded press conference in front of its downtown headquarters ahead of Thursday’s town hall at La Cumbre Junior High. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
The Environmental Defense Center held a star-studded press conference in front of its downtown headquarters ahead of Thursday’s town hall at La Cumbre Junior High. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Mati Waiya, founder and executive director of the Wishtoyo Chumash Foundation, performs a blessing at Thursday’s press conference at the EDC. The foundation and Center for Biological Diversity are suing two federal agencies for rubber-stamping the lease extensions for Sable’s offshore platforms in federal waters. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Mati Waiya at Thursday’s press conference | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
The Environmental Defense Center held a star-studded press conference in front of its downtown headquarters ahead of Thursday’s town hall at La Cumbre Junior High. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Julia Louis-Dreyfus speaks at Thursday’s press conference. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Environmental Defense Center Chief Counsel Linda Krop speaks at Thursday’s press conference. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Linda Krop and Jane Fonda at Thursday’s press conference at the EDC | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert speaks at Thursday’s press conference | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Chumash filmmaker and environmental activist Spenser Jaimes at Thursday’s press conference at the EDC | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
State Senator Monique Limón and Julia Louis-Dreyfus | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Thursday’s town hall meeting with state agencies involved in regulating Sable Offshore’s oil pipeline and restart plans drew hundreds of attendees from all sides of the equation. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Santa Barbara County Supervisor Roy Lee at Thursday’s town hall meeting at La Cumbre Junior High | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Thursday’s town hall meeting with state agencies involved in regulating Sable Offshore’s oil pipeline and restart plans drew hundreds of attendees from all sides of the equation. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Thursday’s town hall meeting with state agencies involved in regulating Sable Offshore’s oil pipeline and restart plans drew hundreds of attendees from all sides of the equation. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom
Thursday’s town hall meeting with state agencies involved in regulating Sable Offshore’s oil pipeline and restart plans drew hundreds of attendees from all sides of the equation. | Credit: Ingrid Bostrom