SoCalGas Settles Aliso Canyon Litigation for Low $1.1 Billion
Agreement falls far short of community and environmentalist demands.
Published Sep 27, 2021
Agreement falls far short of community and environmentalist demands.
Los Angeles, CA — Six years after the Aliso Canyon gas blowout that sent more than 100,000 metric tons of methane, metals, aerosolized oil and volatile organic compounds into the air, displaced 8,000 families, and sickened countless more, SoCalGas has agreed to a charge of $1.1 billion. Members of the nearby Porter Ranch community have consistently reported public health impacts from headaches and nosebleeds to asthma and cancer ever since the blowout.
“Money alone will never atone for the horrors the blowout unleashed on thousands of Los Angeles families,” Food & Water Watch’s California Director Alexandra Nagy said in response to the announcement. “Nor will it erase the legacy of SoCalGas’ negligence. Community members still suffer daily from the health impacts of poisonous gases released into their neighborhoods then and now. If SoCalGas thinks $1.1 billion is enough to buy their silence or muddle their memories, it is sorely mistaken. Governor Newsom has directed the CPUC to shut down the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility. Nothing other than the immediate closure of Aliso Canyon will protect the safety of nearby communities or honor their experiences.”
“Don’t get too excited by this agreement,” said Save Porter Ranch President and Cofounder Matt Pakucko. “You can’t put a price tag on human suffering. SoCalGas’ devastating blowout will never be behind us until the Aliso Canyon storage facility is shut down and the danger it poses to the community is permanently eliminated. We are nowhere near a resolution.”
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Contact: Jessica Gable, (202) 683-2478, [email protected]
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