BLOG | To Frack or Not to Frack: Is that the Question for Culver City Residents?

On Saturday morning a friend and I attended a seminar on Fracking and how it affects, or could affect, Culver City. I really wanted to go, as I had heard a lot of different things about the process from third hand sources and felt the need to improve my education. How might Fracking affect the environment? particularly how could it affect Culver City and our home values in the longer term?

There were several speakers that presented information ranging from, explaining a little of what the process is, potential health risks to, what's happening locally, especially the Inglewood Oil Field 10% of which is on Culver City land?

In the interests of keeping it real, there was a lot of great information, and unfortunately a lot of hyperbole. I understand it's an emotive issue, and fully accept some people have already come to the conclusion that Fracking must be banned, period.

In regard to yours truly I am, rightly or wrongly, still in the gathering facts phase in terms of making my own personal decision.

There were however two disclosures from the panel that made me go; Huh!

1. There isn't any regulations in the State of California in regard to the Fracking process. So, if there is an active well or oil field, where the drilling company already have rights to drill, they can Frack away to their hearts content without any additional rules and regulations!
   This made me wonder how that is even possible in a State that is understood to be one of the leaders in protecting the environment? Am I really living in a country where the city of New York regulates the size of the soda you can order, but California doesn't have a thing to say about Fracking?
2. The other doozy was, that despite a general understanding that Frackers are using chemicals underground to facilitate the fracturing process, there isn't any law that requires the companies to disclosure exactly what chemicals they are using? This does seem completely out of kilter with pretty everything else we make or buy anywhere in the Golden State.

Common sense would seem to suggest that the call for a moratorium, until major questions like the two above are fully cogitated in the public arena, should be a  given. Meghan Sahli Wells, Culver City Council Member, revealed that a letter asking for a moratorium had been sent to Governor Jerry Brown some time ago, as yet without reply.

Where are you on this issue?