Environmentalists are urging Gov. Newsom to ban new oil and gas drilling in California

California’s legacy of oil drilling should be just that, many environmentalists argue — relegated to the history books.

They are urging Gov. Gavin Newsom to ban new oil and gas drilling in California and completely phase out fossil fuel extraction in one of the nation’s top petroleum-producing — and gasoline-consuming — states.

At the least, they want the state to impose buffer zones prohibiting new oil and gas wells near schools, hospitals and residential neighborhoods and also require monitoring for potentially hazardous emissions from abandoned or plugged wells, proposals already being considered by state lawmakers.

“It sure would make us happy if he made a big splash about this. It’s month four. People are being very patient. By month six, patience may wear thin,” said Sierra Club California Director Kathryn Phillips.

Read more: https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-gavin-newsom-fracking-oil-drilling-ban-20190423-story.html