Attorney General Bonta Rejects Trump Administration’s Inadequate Analysis of Oil and Gas Drilling Harms Across California

OAKLAND - California Attorney General Rob Bonta submitted comment letters opposing two draft supplemental environmental impact statements (Draft Supplemental EISs) issued by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) that insufficiently evaluate the environmental harms of oil and gas development on federal lands across 20 counties in central and coastal California. The Draft Supplemental EISs are required to open new areas of federal land to oil and gas drilling. Prior efforts to enable additional drilling in California failed because of insufficient environmental reviews, but BLM is trying again to cut corners and enable expansive oil and gas development within the state. In the comment letters, Attorney General Bonta asserts that this latest effort is another insufficient attempt at environmental review for several reasons and, once finalized, would worsen air pollution in already overburdened communities.

"This is the Trump Administration's latest attempt in a long-running effort to try and open new parts of California to oil and gas drilling that would benefit the fossil fuel industry and harm California communities that already face some of the worst air quality in the nation. Like in many prior attempts, this Administration is again failing to adequately consider the environmental impacts of drilling," said Attorney General Bonta. "Our message has always been clear: California's ecosystems are not playgrounds for the rich. Millions of Californians cherish and rely on our natural environment, and my office will continue to oppose any illegal attempts to impair it."

If finalized, the Draft Supplemental EISs would enable BLM to proceed with oil and gas lease sales across 400,000 acres of public lands and 1.2 million acres of federally managed underground resources in BLM's Bakersfield Planning Area, and 725,500 acres of federal mineral estate in its Central Coast Planning Area. These lands are currently used for a wide variety of purposes, including wildlife conservation and recreation. Some lands are adjacent to protected public lands like the Los Padres National Forest and Pinnacles National Park, and others surround military bases. Opening more than two million acres of public lands and mineral estate to oil and gas drilling within California would increase air and water pollution in areas of the state that are already overburdened with pollution. In addition to causing environmental harms, this would impact public health. Oil and gas development is connected to negative health impacts like reduced fetal growth, preterm birth, asthma, and reduced lung function. The plans are also at odds with state laws prohibiting hydraulic fracturing and drilling near communities, homes, and schools, as well as state efforts to combat global climate change.

In the comment letter, Attorney General Bonta argues that the Draft Supplemental EISs for the Bakersfield Field Office and Central Coast Field Office are deficient for many reasons, including because BLM:

• Utilized unfounded assumptions about the number of wells that will be hydraulically fractured each year. State regulations prohibit hydraulic fracturing.
• Failed to consider recent science and data or adequately analyze the harms from oil and gas development - especially those related to water quality and quantity, air pollution, and the outsized public health harms to low-income communities and communities of color.
• Failed to consider reasonable alternatives to its proposed actions, including those that would protect more public lands and limit or mitigate the harms to nearby communities.
• Failed to resolve inconsistencies with state plans and policies that set targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and that prohibit drilling within 3,200 feet of homes, schools, and other sensitive locations.

Attorney General Bonta is a leader in standing up to efforts that undermine environmental protections and benefit the fossil fuel industry. Earlier this year, he filed a lawsuit against the Trump Administration to block its attempt to usurp state authority by approving Sable Offshore Corp.'s pipeline restart plan and emergency permit. He also vigorously opposed the Trump Administration's various efforts to open up waters offshore California for drilling.