Item # 2 Correspondence – Anna Christensen
From: Anna Christensen [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Tuesday, February 7, 2023 1:34 PM
To: CityClerk <[email protected]>
Subject: Revised comments on Agenda Item 2, State Legislature Committee Mtg 2/7/22
‐EXTERNAL‐
Comments 2023 Draft State Legislative Agenda
February 7. 2023
To: City of Long Beach State Legislation Committee From: Los Cerritos Wetlands Task Force, Sierra Club Re: Draft State Legislative Agenda 2023 and SB 1137 NOTE:
Excerpts from Draft State Legislative Agenda 2023 are italicized and in BLACK text Comments form LCWTF appear in BLUE
SB 1137 would prevent new permits for oil and gas drilling within a 3,200-foot comprehensive health and safety zone. The bill also will create a pathway to an end of existing drilling in the setback zone by prohibiting operators from seeking rework permits. Rework permits are granted to operators to repair or maintain the functionality of wells- SB1137 blocks any rework permits within 3,200ft, and will order the plugging of wells within that distance. This is a monumental win led by frontline communities and environmental justice groups that have been fighting to end neighborhood drilling in California for over a decade.
Draft State Legislative Agenda 2023
INTRODUCTION
“To reflect legislative and funding priorities”
Priority Legislative and Budget Items
“Support policies, legislation, and funding that allocate direct financial resources to mitigate the City’s liability for oil well abandonment and ensure the State saves for their abandonment costs in the Tidelands.”
Rationale: Item recommended by the Energy Resources Department as a result of the passage of SB 1137 (Gonzalez and Limon), which significantly expedites the City’s current timeline relative to the phase-out of oil and gas extraction activities. With the City’s abandonment liability estimated between 140-180 million dollars, direct financial resources are needed to fully fund abandonment.
SB 1137 does not necessarily restrict the ability of the city to address oil well abandonment. Expediting the timeline reduces the impacts and potential financial, health, and environmental risks of drilling overall. Reduced income from Tidelands operations must be balanced by costs (financial and otherwise) borne by the city and residents due to pollution from existing and proposed wells. This calculation has not been included in the Draft State Legislative Agenda. However, SB 1137 does have a Item # 2 Correspondence – Anna Christensen
positive impact on many of the following legislative agenda items. The discussion of SB 1137 has been limited to reduced revenues from oil drilling. However, SB 1137 has actual and potential outcomes that align with the City’s “legislative and funding priorities” and its core value of “Resilience and Adaptability” which deserve consideration. Overall, this draft document fails to support legislation which transitions away from fossil fuels and instead, appears to support existing and expanding fossil fuel development at the expense of public health and the environment.
Recovery (not priority items)
“Support legislation and funding that will reduce the impact of climate change on the most
vulnerable populations including older adults and people experiencing homelessness.” ENERGY
3.1. Energy Resiliency - Hydrogen is a fossil fuel, where is support for solar/wind? “Support the state’s Alliance for Renewable Clean Hydrogen Energy Systems (ARCHES) to pursue
Department of Energy federal funding for a California Hydrogen Hub.” Rationale: Items recommended by the Recovery team to highlight the need for additional resources and support for upstream preventative solutions to key challenges the City is facing in its effort to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. - What does this have to do with COVID-19?
ENVIRONMENT, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND RECREATION
4.1. Air Quality and Environmental Sustainability - Why is this topic limited to the shipping industry
and corridors? Note: SB 1137 would positively impact air quality in the City overall.
EQUITY
“Support policies, legislation, and funding that allocates resources to advance the City’s equity and reconciliation priorities.”
“Support policies, legislation, and funding that focuses on racial healing with Black, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous, and other people of color most impacted by systemic racism.” SB 1137 addresses the inequality of wells and pollution located in low income communities of color.
MAIN DOCUMENT
Core Values
Resilience and Adaptability
Item # 2 Correspondence – Anna Christensen
The City has been greatly tested in the last year as we and the rest of the world faced unprecedented challenges brought on by the global COVID-19 public health pandemic and economic downturn. Resilience and adaptability are crucial as we continue to recover and adapt to ever changing surroundings. Resiliency is the capacity for communities and organizations to heal from trauma, and adaptability refers to the ability to cope with adversity and adapt to challenges or change.
In addition to COVID-19, the City, the State, the Nation, and the world face “unprecedented challenges” brought on by climate change as a result of past, present, and projected fossil fuel operations. The State Legislative Agenda must include guidance on and support for “legislation and funding priorities” that address this crisis, including reducing the City’s production of oil and gas and its dependency on revenues from oil drilling operations.
2023 Focus Statements
Priority Legislative and Budget Items
● Support policies, legislation, and funding that allocate direct financial resources to mitigate the City’s liability for oil well abandonment and ensure the State saves for their abandonment costs in the Tidelands. (New language proposed by Energy Resources) See comment on SB 1137 above
Infrastructure
● Support infrastructure investments that reduce long-term operations and maintenance expenditures for the City.
● Support sustainable infrastructure funding to advance the City’s climate resiliency efforts.
● Support infrastructure investments that reduce long-term operations and maintenance
expenditures for the City.
● Support sustainable infrastructure funding to advance the City’s climate resiliency efforts
SB 1137 is aligned with and contributes to these goals
Recovery (Additional language in this section proposed by Recovery team) ● Support legislation and funding that will reduce the impact of climate change on the most vulnerable populations
SB 1137 addresses inequality of wells and pollution located in low income communities of color. 1.5 Industry needs
● Support policies, legislation and grants to attract and retain local green collar jobs in industries such as green building, renewable energy technologies, and energy efficiency.
Item # 2 Correspondence – Anna Christensen
1.6. Quality of Life
● Support policies, legislation and grants to increase or maintain resources dedicated to infrastructure that contribute to economic development and neighborhood quality.
SB 1137 improves quality of life by creating a 3200 ft buffer zone protecting communities from toxic emissions from oil wells.
3. ENERGY
● Support policies, legislation and funding to are consistent with the City’s long-term objectives for reliable, competitively priced energy supply
3.2 Utilities and Waste Management
● Support policies, legislation and funding to are consistent with the City’s long- term objectives for reliable, competitively priced energy supply ● Support policies, legislation and funding to are consistent with the City’s long- term objectives for reliable, competitively priced energy supply Oil and gas extraction are not “consistent with the City’s long-term objectives for reliable, competitively priced energy supply.” Wind, solar, and other green energy is proving to be less costly. Additionally, cost must be calculated in terms of overall realities and risks, not merely to the City budget and the economy, but to quality of life and health.
● Support policies, legislation and funding for the maintenance of existing oil property infrastructure, repair and improvement.
This statement obligates the City to continue to extract or support the extraction of oil, and is counter to multiple other State Legislative Agenda items. ● Support the full funding of the State’s future obligation for abandonment and cleanup of oil fields located in the Long Beach Tidelands.
4. ENVIRONMENT, NATURAL RESOURCES AND RECREATION
4.1. Air Quality and Environmental Sustainability
● Support policies, legislation and funding to provide funding for local government actions that address climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, while protecting recognition of early local government actions that were taken to address climate change.
● Support policies, legislation and funding to couple planning efforts with greenhouse gas emission reduction, green building, and transit-oriented development strategies.
● Support policies, legislation and funding in alignment with the City’s Climate Action Plan (CAP), Los Angeles County’s Community Climate Action Plan, and the State’s climate change initiatives.
Item # 2 Correspondence – Anna Christensen
● Support policies, legislation, and funding to reduce air pollutants adversely impacting the environment and population's wellbeing while ensuring equitable access to healthy air quality.
● Work closely with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the South Coast Air Quality
Management District (SCAQMD) to mitigate the impacts from stationary and non- stationary sources of air pollution in the Long Beach and greater Los Angeles air basin.
SB 1137 is aligned with and contributes to these goals
4.2. Stormwater Management and Recreational Water Quality ● Support policies, legislation and funding that would provide local governments with resources to implement stormwater management best practices, including low impact development (LID) ordinances to capture stormwater at its source, municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4) permit compliance, infrastructure improvements and other initiatives to improve recreational water quality at the City’s beaches and local waterways.
The State Legislative Agenda must include language that addresses Water Quality overall, not limited to stormwater and sewers. Oil and gas operations, on and offshore, contribute to water pollution. In additional to the impacts of regular operations, “accidental” spills have had and are predicted to have catastrophic impacts on water quality.
5. FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY
● Oppose policies and legislation that would reduce City revenues. ● Support policies and legislation that sustain financial wellbeing for the City These statements are potentially contradictory as some legislation (SB1137) may reduce City revenues from one source but will actually sustain the financial well being for the City overall. Additionally, reducing City revenues from industrial and other sources that negatively impact the quality of life of residents and/or the environment, must be left open to consideration.
8. PUBLIC HEALTH
● Support policies, legislation and funding to improve and innovate public health functions through ongoing evaluation, research, and quality improvement. ● Support policies, legislation and funding to investigate, diagnose, and address health problems and hazards affecting the population.
● Support policies, legislation and funding for the quality, use, transparency and public availability of data to inform decisions and actions that improve quality of life outcomes for Black communities and communities of color. ● Support funding for the implementation of programs that promote community wellness at the neighborhood level.
Item # 2 Correspondence – Anna Christensen
SB 1137 is aligned with and contributes to these goals. Support legislation that investigates and acts to address the impacts of urban oil drilling on public health.