Posted on 11/19/2015 6:12:06 AM PST by thackney
The state's chief regulator for oil and gas fields issued an emergency order Wednesday demanding that the perpetrator of a nearly month-long natural gas leak in Aliso Canyon that has irritated residents of Porter Ranch turn over all its test data and submit plans to seal up the breach.
State Oil and Gas Supervisor Steven Bohlen ordered Southern California Gas Co. to provide all testing results and data and asked for a written plan to seal the leak and,if necessary, a plan to complete a relief well.
The company has tried since Oct. 23 to stem the flow of gas from an 8,750-foot-deep well on Oat Mountain atop one of the nation's largest natural gas fields midway between the ends of Tampa and Mason avenues.
While the gas company has maintained its leak poses no health hazard or danger, residents have complained of illness when the nasty smell wafts over their neighborhood.
Officials from Southern California Gas Co. were not available late Wednesday for comment.
Bohlen, head of the state Department of Conservation Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources, said he's asking for the test data and leak plug plan under his authority and responsibility "to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to prevent damage to life, health, property or natural resources."
The Governor's Office of Emergency Services is also on site to coordinate state monitoring agencies and to ensure public safety.
Bohlen blamed Southern California Gas Co., operator of the Aliso Canyon Storage Facility, for failing to stop the month-long leak and not being candid about its tests.
"(The) operator's efforts to address the uncontrolled flow of fluids have included various tests and remedial work," he states in the emergency order. "However, the efforts have not yet remedied the uncontrolled flow of fluids nor stopped the waste of gas.
"In addition, (the) operator has not yet furnished the division with all information about, and results from, some of the tests and/or remedial work, he said. "In order to ensure that all necessary steps are taken to prevent damage to life, health, property or natural resources, the supervisor needs immediate access to these data to monitor the uncontrolled flow of fluids and current and planned activities to stop the uncontrolled flow of fluids and waste of gas."
The emergency order demands that SoCal Gas provide continuous access to real-time electronic monitoring of wellhead pressures, diagnostic tests and well logs by 5 p.m. Thursday, in addition to any downhole videos and well logs, pressure and other surveys.
It also demanded the company provide a timeline by the end of the week for when it will prepare a relief well site, and when such drilling will begin.
SoCal Gas has tried pumping a brine solution into the well to stanch the gas leak, to no avail.
The gas contains a compound called mercaptan, which gives it the foul, rotten-egg odor.
A community activist group, Save Porter Ranch, said it has received complaints from residents about headaches, dizziness, vomiting, shortness of breath and other health issues, as well as reports of sick pets.
While air samples taken from the neighborhood contained amounts of methane and the additive, the levels would not be considered a health risk, health and air-quality officials have said.
That makes a lot more sense than did the atop one of the nation's largest natural gas fields given the presence of mercaptan, which I generally think of as an additive.
I saw where they plugged this well today. Now, let the lawsuits begin. The article from the LA Times said they would be sued for letting out vast quantities of methane into the atmosphere. Climate change nazis are alive and well in California. The fruitcakes want them to abandon the storage field and go green.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.