Gas leakGov. Brown declares emergency in wake of massive L.A. natural gas leak
California governor Jerry Brown on Wednesday declared an emergency in a Los Angeles neighborhood where a natural gas well has been spewing record amounts of stinking, global-warming methane gas. Energy experts said the breach at the natural gas storage reservoir, and the subsequent, ongoing release, are the largest known occurrence of its kind.
California governor Jerry Brown on Wednesday declared an emergencyin a Los Angeles neighborhood where a natural gas well has been spewing record amounts of stinking, global-warming methane gas.
Ten weeks after the 23 October breach in the well was spotted, Brown instructed state agencies to force Southern California Gas Company, which owns the stricken facility, to plugs the leak.
“All necessary and viable actions will be taken to ensure Southern California Gas Company: maximizes daily withdrawals of natural gas from the Aliso Canyon Storage Facility for use or storage elsewhere; captures leaking gas and odorants while relief wells are being completed; and identifies how it will stop the gas leak if relief wells fail to seal the leaking well, or if the existing leak worsens,” the governor’s order said.
The blow out in the well had released “major amounts of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas” and caused widespread disruption to local people in the Porter Ranch area, the statement from Brown noted.
The Telegraph quoted energy experts who said the breach at the natural gas storage reservoir, and the subsequent, ongoing release, are the largest known occurrence of its kind.
Methane is dozens of times more warming than carbon dioxide, and the storage facility, which serves more than 100 wells, is one of the largest in the state.
Thousands of people, including schoolchildren, have been evacuated from Porter Ranch to escape the rotten-egg smell of the chemicals added to the gas.
Brown directed his administration to take “all necessary and viable actions” to make sure SoCalGas captures leaking natural gas and odorants. He also required the company to spell out how it planned to plug the well if its current effort failed.
Brown’s order specifically bans SoCalGas from injecting more natural gas into the storage, and calls for independent monitoring of air quality. Brown also ordered daily inspections of other natural gas storage wells in the state.
