Below are questions or assertions that have been asked by the community or interested parties. If you do not see information that answers your question, we encourage you to contact us using the Contact form at the bottom of this page. We will answer your question and post it here.
How much water is used during drilling?
Our intention is to ensure that we minimize the use of any water in this project, as well as to ensure that we capture and reuse water to its maximum intention. Water usage will be addressed in the EIR. Per the original project description, our expectation is that drilling will require an estimated 10,500 gallons per day depending on the downhole conditions, pace of drilling, quality of water and amount of water reused each day.
What are the impacts on local water resources?
Like any business in the community, Termo purchases its water from the local supplier. While water usage will be addressed in the EIR, Termo is committed to minimizing our water usage and water reuse. As outlined in the description, our water usage would not have a negative impact on local supplies and will contribute revenue to the local water district for continued infrastructure improvement and water security.
Currently we are in the Administrative Draft EIR review period. This draft EIR is being reviewed and commented on by all the relevant County agencies. The EIR consultant will then make the necessary clarifications or corrections and the document will be reviewed again. We would hope to have a Draft Public EIR available this Fall, but these things can move slowly.
An EIR is a structured environmental analysis under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) that ensures all potential environmental impacts of a proposed project are studied and that the community and stakeholders have a chance to offer input and review alternatives.
There are several distinct regulatory mandated steps in the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) – Environmental Impact Report (EIR) process. Public meetings hosted by Los Angeles County and the EIR Team will take place to give citizens the opportunity to voice their concerns on the project directly to the EIR Team and LA County decision-makers.
The first step is the Notice of Preparation stating that an EIR will be undertaken and the Scoping Document which outlines what the EIR will study.
On April 13th the LA County Department of Regional Planning and the EIR Consulting Team distributed the Notice of Preparation (NOP) and the Scoping Document (NOS) to the State Clearing House and relevant County public agencies. These documents are also available for download from the DRP website.
The mailing of hardcopies of the NOP and NOS occurred on April 21st. Hard copies are sent to those individuals and entities that have contacted the LA County Department of Regional Planning about the Project in the past or who are qualified stakeholders. About 350 copies will be mailed out by the County and the EIR Consultant.
The start of the Public Comment Period on the Scoping Document begins April 27th and will continue until June 11th. The thirty day comment period allows stakeholders to submit written comments on the Scoping Document and to propose what they think should be studied in the EIR.
Written comments on the Scoping Document should be submitted to:
Ms. Iris Chi
LA County, Dept. of Regional Planning
320 West Temple Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Email is preferred: ichi@planning.lacounty.gov
A Public Scoping Meeting where stakeholders may deliver written or oral comments on the breadth of the EIR will be held on May 20th in the Multipurpose Room of the Porter Ranch Community School (12450 Mason Avenue, Porter Ranch, CA) from 6.30 pm to 8.30 pm.
We hope all stakeholders will be able to come out and provide their input on the EIR. Please contact the Department of Regional Planning with any questions.
Some social media posts and a letters to County officials have claimed that the Project would usurp the use of open space for recreational purposes or that Termo would prohibit access to open space through “…robust security”. This is quite simply false. Termo operations take place on private land that is not now nor has it been open to the public. The reference to “robust security” was taken out of context from a document submitted to the Significant Ecological Area Technical Advisory Committee detailing the value to the area’s wildlife from Termo's ongoing operations. The entire paragraph is:
"Termo’s oilfield operations generate minimal noise, limit human activity in the area, avoid night lighting of open space, provide robust security and fire safety services, and are developed and operated to avoid impacts to wildlife and native botanical resources. Completion of the project is not expected to limit native habitat areas for foraging, breeding, or dispersal of wildlife. As with the numerous SEAs that have been selected and mapped to include oilfields throughout Los Angeles County, the proposed Termo project area will continue to serve the objectives of the SEA program." (The entire document is available here.)
For example oil and gas operations and open space are compatible within a landscape and are far better at coexisting with wildlife than residential development.
Termo has not erected any fences, closed any areas, or prohibited any recreation access (except for those trespassing illegally on private property) and we cooperate regularly with local and state law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of the lands and respect for private property.
No. All of our existing wells and all our proposed North Aliso Project wells use near vertical drilling. California law requires that drilling only be done in parcels for which the driller has a legal right to do so and legal rulings require the notification of the surface owner even if they do not own the mineral rights. Termo has never drilled or hydraulically fractured under anyone’s home. This information may be verified on the DOGGR website.
The Aliso Canyon Field has been in production since 1938, long before the Porter Ranch Community came into existence. Porter Ranch home values reportedly increased more than 9% in the last year. Adding three well pads to an existing oilfield on the other side of the ridge will not change the neighborhood setting or value.
The oilfield is not in a groundwater basin as verified by the California Department of Water Resources. The oilfield is well outside the San Fernando Valley basin (the nearest groundwater basin), separated by a mile of earth laterally and a mile and a half vertically. The project poses no threat to groundwater.
Termo is not owned by the Gas Company (Sempra Energy / SoCal Gas). We are an independent, family and employee owned, company. We cooperate on a regular basis with SoCal Gas and we do sell them the natural gas that we produce from our operations.
None of the construction work currently being undertaken in the Porter Ranch area by Sempra has any relation or bearing on Termo’s proposed North Aliso Canyon project.
Two reasons - First, we are a family owned company and we have a proud 80 year history. We care about local communities and our reputation in them. Second - you don’t have to take our word for it, there are laws that govern what we do: DOGGR, AQMD, RWQCB all have multiple reporting and monitoring requirements that Termo strictly adheres to.
As Californian’s, we have some of the highest demand in the world for gasoline, diesel and other petroleum products. Because we have some of the World’s strictest environmental laws, the refineries for California gas and other products are located in California. If we don’t produce California crude oil for California demands, then we have to import it from places like Ecuador, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The further it has to come, the higher the emissions from ships, trains, and trucks and the higher the risk of an accident. Energy independence is good for California, good for the United States, and good for the environment.
California is on the cusp of dramatic changes in how oil is transported to the state. In 2012, about 70% of oil imported by California refineries came through marine terminals; only one million barrels or 0.3% came by rail. In 2013, crude oil imports by rail jumped 506% to 6.3 million barrels, or approximately 1% of total imports. Many experts, including the California Energy Commission, project that this number could increase by up to 150 million barrels, or 25% of total imports, by 2016.
California Energy Production and Use
Transport Fuel