The Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility will maintain its current storage capacity for now, the California Public Utilities Commission voted unanimously Thursday, Nov. 19, despite pleas from several nearby residents who wanted the commission to lower the limit as an interim step until, they hope, the facility is permanently shut down.
Thursday’s decision — voted on as a consent item with no discussion among the commissioners — means that Southern California Gas Co. can continue to store up to 34 billion cubic feet of natural gas in the underground storage facility until a more permanent decision is made after a study into the feasibility of shutting down the facility is completed.
SoCalGas had sought to restore capacity to 68.6 billion cubic feet, arguing that doing so would allow the company to stock up on natural gas in preparation for winter, thus helping to prevent price volatility and promote reliability in terms of energy supply.
Aliso Canyon: Five Years of Tumult
- Part one: The leak spurred dozens of lawsuits involving thousands of plaintiffs.
- Part two: An infographic offers a glimpse of the leak, the effort to stop it and trends in energy consumption in California.
- Part three: Five years after Aliso Canyon gas leak, public health at the heart of the tug-of-war.
- Part four: In Porter Ranch, development returns, but angst endures for some residents.
- Part five: The future of the Aliso Canyon facility – SoCal Gas calls it essential, but not all agree.
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- Related: Timeline portrays key moments in five years of Aliso Canyon developments.
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The CPUC had lowered the storage capacity at the site following the 2015 blowout that marked the largest natural gas leak in U.S. history, during which 109,000 metric tons of methane spewed into the air. The CPUC then allowed the utility company to increase the facility’s storage capacity incrementally over time, though the limit remains less than half of what it was before the blowout.
In October, staff from the CPUC’s energy division recommended increasing the storage capacity again up to 68.6 billion cubic feet — the same level deemed safe by the California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM), attorneys for SoCalGas noted in their Nov. 5 response to a recent proposed decision by an administrative law judge to maintain capacity at its current limit.
“The Commission should allow SoCalGas to operate Aliso Canyon at the level deemed safe by CalGEM,” reads the response from the utility company. “Further, as acknowledged in the (proposed decision), the majority of parties also advocate for the interim storage level to be set at 68.6 Bcf. This modification would allow Aliso Canyon to be used as it was intended and maximize the reliability of the SoCalGas System, and would align with the Energy Division’s recommendation.”
On the flip side, several residents living in or near the Porter Ranch neighborhood, which is adjacent to the site, unsuccessfully pleaded with the commission Thursday to lower the capacity further or to declare it “an asset of last resort,” which would limit the number of days per year gas could be withdrawn from the site.
They cited health effects such as skin and eye irritation, headaches and nausea that they say they continue to experience as a result of living so close to a facility that has emitted harmful substances.
“The real risk is to the community next door to that facility,” said Matt Pakucko, co-founder of the Save Porter Ranch group. “We pay the incalculable price in health unknowingly from that initial disaster and every time that place gives off emissions.”
Residents also raised concerns with having a gas storage facility operate near an earthquake fault line and within a potentially fire-hazardous area.
SoCalGas has repeatedly said the trace amounts of benzene present during the 2015 gas leak were within normal range and have cited findings by the California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment which determined that potential exposure to well-control substances during that time would have been short-term and at low concentrations, and that long-term health impacts weren’t expected.
Representatives for the utility company also insist that enhanced safety measures were implemented after the 2015 blowout and that the facility is safer than ever to operate.
This week’s decision to keep the storage capacity at Aliso Canyon unchanged is only the latest development in an ongoing debate as to what to do with the facility longterm.
In July 2017, then-Gov. Jerry Brown said he wanted the facility permanently closed within 10 years. Last November, Gov. Gavin Newsom requested the CPUC to expedite the planning for that closure.
A consulting firm hired to evaluate options for closing the facility presented preliminary findings and sought public input during a workshop on Tuesday. The consultants plan to hold another workshop in May when they have more details to share.
