Arroyo Grande oil plans could pollute water, cause earthquakes

We share the concerns of South County residents and the Center for Biological Diversity regarding the proposal to legalize Freeport-McMoRan’s injection of wastewater from the Arroyo Grande oil field into a local aquifer (“EPA must not sacrifice California’s precious water to oil industry,” March 19).

Freeport also plans to drill 31 oil wells on a 10-year-old county permit that was issued 11 years ago but recently extended without regard to new information that was not known when the permit was issued. Of particular concern: the fact that oilfield wastewater injection wells trigger earthquakes.

What this phenomenon is doing to Oklahoma was detailed in the March 21 issue of Time magazine (“Greed, politics and the biggest oil boom in decades”). What it could do to California was indicated in a recent study that found an increase in seismic activity in Kern County was due to the injection of oilfield wastewater.

The extension of Freeport-McMoRan’s permit was granted largely on the assurance that the barrier between its proposed wastewater disposal site and potable water sources is permanent and impermeable. As Freeport moves to expand its local operations, any such assurance becomes increasingly dubious.

This story was originally published March 27, 2016 at 11:34 PM with the headline "Arroyo Grande oil plans could pollute water, cause earthquakes."