LOS ANGELES (CNS) — The Los Angeles City Council Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee Wednesday moved forward a resolution calling for a study into the feasibility of shutting down the Playa del Rey natural gas storage facility, which the resolution said is at high risk of tsunamis, wildfire, and endangering residents.

The resolution, which was introduced by Councilman Mike Bonin, notes that a 2018 study by the California Council on Science and Technology found that the facility "stands out as a facility with relatively higher risk to health and safety than the other facilities in California."


What You Need To Know

  • The L.A. City Council Rules, Elections and Intergovernmental Relations Committee Wednesday moved forward a resolution calling for a study into the feasibility of shutting down the Playa del Rey natural gas storage facility

  • Resolution said facilyt is at high risk of tsunamis, wildfire, and endangering residents

  • The site at 8141 Gulana Ave. is close to LAX and has a large population living nearby, and in the event of a gas leak, could become an environmental disaster

  • If the resolution is adopted it would show the council's support for a study into the feasibility of closing the facility

The site at 8141 Gulana Ave. is close to LAX and has a large population living nearby, and in the event of a gas leak, could become an environmental disaster.

During the 2015 Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility methane leak, 8,000 people had to be evacuated. That was deemed one of the worst natural gas leaks in the United States and one of the worst environmental catastrophes in California history, according to the resolution.

The resolution will go before the entire City Council at an undetermined date. If adopted, it would show the council's support for a study into the feasibility of closing the facility.

"As Los Angeles gets ready to finalize a plan for reaching 100% renewable energy, it is time for the governor to do the same," said Food & Water Watch Southern California organizer Ethan Senser in a statement Wednesday. "But SoCalGas' site at Playa del Rey is not the only dirty gas facility with no place in our clean energy future."