Protecting Our Forest, Creeks, Trails, & Wildlife
Most new oil wells in Ventura County are approved through Zoning Clearances — rubber-stamped approvals issued without a public hearing or environmental review. After a simple application and payment of a $330 fee, the oil company receives permission to drill one or several wells. This practice is particularly troublesome for oil facilities originally permitted back in the 1940s and 1950s. These so-called “antiquated permits” have never undergone environmental review, do not have an expiration date, and allow oil companies to drill an unlimited number of wells through the Zoning Clearance process.
Occasionally, mistakes are made in issuing Zoning Clearances. When that happens, the County’s rules allow any member of the public to appeal the Zoning Clearance to the Planning Commission and eventually the Board of Supervisors for further review. This appeals process allows residents to express their concerns before the drilling moves forward, and gives the County — and the oil company — a chance to address those concerns through a more transparent and public process.
More than 100 oil-related Zoning Clearances have been approved since 2014 (the year that the County began publishing weekly lists of approved Zoning Clearanaces). ForestWatch has appealed three of them, and a fourth set of wells was cancelled under threat of appeal. These four Zoning Clearances authorized oil drilling along creeks and ridgelines near the Los Padres National Forest, and within habitat of the endangered California condor and steelhead trout.
Our appeals have resulted in significant improvements in how the County issues Zoning Clearances. They have also resulted in real, tangible benefits to our communities and to the health of our local environment. Read below for more information on the progress we’re making as we restore transparency and accountability to the County’s decision-making process.
Sespe Oil Field (ZC14-0448)
Issue Date: May 5, 2014
Project: Deepening three wells in the Sespe Oil Field along a tributary of Sespe Creek, just one-half mile from the boundary of the Sespe Condor Sanctuary.
Appellant: Los Padres ForestWatch
Appeal Date: none (project withdrawn without appeal)
Concerns: The County originally issued a Conditional Use Permit for these oil wells in 1976, and updated that permit in 1981. However, when the oil company applied for Zoning Clearances for the three wells in 2014, the company’s application misleadingly relied on the 1976 permit and made no mention of the newer 1981 permit that had replaced it. The Planning Division took the oil company’s word and approved the Zoning Clearances 12 days later. This oversight was significant because the updated 1981 permit required the oil company to undertake a more complex approval process (including a public hearing and preparation of environmental documents), rather than a simple Zoning Clearance.
Outcome: Seven days after the County mistakenly approved the Zoning Clearance, ForestWatch notified the County and state oil regulators about the error, and announced our intent to file an appeal with the County Planning Commission. Shortly thereafter, the Planning Division notified the oil company that the approvals were nullified, and the state cancelled its authorizations as well. The oil company was instructed to re-apply for a Minor Modification, which requires a public hearing and CEQA review. To our knowledge, no such permit modification has been issued.
Hopper Canyon (ZC14-0470)
Issue Date: August 1, 2014
Project: Drill two new wells in the Hopper Canyon Oil Field along Hopper Creek, directly south of the Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge.
Appellant: Los Padres ForestWatch
Appeal Date: August 11, 2014
Concerns: The proposed wells were located near the boundary of the Hopper Mountain National Wildlife Refuge, a 2,471-acre sanctuary for endangered California condors. Federal biologists use the refuge as a field base of operations for the California Condor Recovery Program. The refuge contains condor release sites, holding pens, feeding stations, and condor nesting, roosting, and foraging areas. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service recommends 23 condor protection measures for oil facilities, but the Planning Division did not apply any of them to the two new wells, placing condors in the area at serious risk of harm. The proposed well location was less than one mile from a known condor nesting site.
In addition, the proposed drill site was approximately 70 feet from Hopper Creek, a tributary to the Santa Clara River. Southern steelhead (a critically endangered fish) historically spawned and reared in Hopper Creek, which – according to a 2005 report – contains some of the best steelhead habitat in the entire Santa Clara River watershed. The County’s zoning ordinance requires oil wells and other infrastructure to be placed at least 100 feet from the edge of stream banks to protect watercourses and aquatic habitat. Also, the company’s application did not contain all of the items required by County procedures (for example, it was missing a copy of the company’s Oil Spill Containment Plan and the Pipeline Maintenance Plan).
Outcome: The oil company provided copies of its spill containment plans during the Planning Commission hearing. Our appeals were denied, but after the hearings, the County re-issued the Zoning Clearance with the two Hopper Canyon wells moved further away from the creek. County staff confirmed that the new location was proposed by the oil company to “clear uncertainties” regarding the creek setback issue. The company also included additional materials in its revised application which were missing from its original application. According to state records, the wells were never drilled.
Temescal (ZC14-0965)
Issue Date: September 23, 2014
Project: Drill five new oil wells in the Temescal Oil Field, located south of the boundary of the Los Padres National Forest
Appellant: Los Padres ForestWatch
Appeal Date: October 3, 2014 (to PC); March 2, 2015 (to BOS)
Concerns: The wells were proposed for a ridgetop near the Los Padres National Forest with high levels of condor activity. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service recommends 23 condor protection measures for oil facilities, but the Planning Division did not apply any of them to the five new wells, placing condors in the area at serious risk of harm.
Outcome: The Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors denied our appeals. Afterwards, the oil company submitted a revised application with additional materials that were missing from its original application. The County re-issued the Zoning Clearances on June 11, 2016. According to state records, the wells were never drilled.
Santa Paula Canyon (ZC16-1072)
Issue Date: October 18, 2016
Appellants: Los Padres ForestWatch, Center for Biological Diversity
Appeal Date: October 28, 2016 (to PC); September 14, 2017 (to BOS)
Concerns: The Board of Supervisors renewed the permit for this oil facility in 2015, allowing up to 19 new wells along a popular hiking trail in Santa Paula Canyon. The new permit required the oil company to submit certain documents, plans, and reports within one year. If those conditions were satisfied, then the oil company would receive a Zoning Clearance allowing it to move forward with its expansion plans. However, the oil company failed to submit the required documents, including proof of liability insurance, proof of installation of BMPs prepared by a qualified biologist, dust control plan, landscaping plan, and proof of County approval of automatic shut-off valve, among other items. Despite these omissions, the County issued the Zoning Clearance anyway.
Outcome: The oil company submitted additional materials prior to and during the Planning Commission appeal hearing, in partial satisfaction of our concerns. The Planning Commission denied our appeal on September 7, 2017, so we filed an appeal to the Board of Supervisors. Prior to and during the BOS hearing, the oil company submitted additional materials further addressing some of our concerns, including an improved landscaping plan using native species (instead of invasive pepper trees), an updated proof of liability insurance, and additional measures to protect endangered California condors.
