Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California Condemns Big Oil’s Latest Dirty Trick: Filing Frivolous Lawsuit to Undermine Health and Safety Buffer Zone Law That Protects Communities from Toxic Drilling
SACRAMENTO – The Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California (CSHC) condemns the new Big-Oil backed lawsuit aimed at overturning SB 1137—a landmark health and safety law that prohibits new oil drilling within 3,200 feet of homes, schools, and hospitals. This is just the latest in a series of dirty tricks and shady maneuvers by Big Oil to undermine basic protections for communities that they have harmed and continue to feed their greed.
“We will continue to fight to uphold SB 1137 because it helps protect our communities from toxic pollution,” said Mabel Tsang, Political Director of California Environmental Justice Alliance and CSHC Steering Committee Member. “Big Oil continues to manipulate public process and waste Californians' time and resources with this lawsuit to attempt to delay justice for the communities most impacted. Our health isn’t negotiable—and we won’t stand by while they try to turn back the clock on the progress we’ve made.”
The Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California fought and won against Big Oil’s efforts to unravel a health and safety buffer zone law (SB 1137 - Lena Gonzalez) that prohibits new oil drilling within 3,200 feet of where nearly 3 million Californians live, work, and play. Yesterday’s lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court by two oil and gas royalty owners, is yet another move by Big Oil and its allies to put their profits over the health and safety of California communities.
“Once again, the protections we won to keep toxic drilling away from homes, schools, and hospitals are under attack,” said Darryl Molina Sarmiento, Executive Director of Communities for a Better Environment, a CSHC Steering Committee Member. “This lawsuit is explicitly about protecting profits at the expense of the health and safety of frontline communities. Oil drilling infrastructure in the middle of a neighborhood is dangerous and unnecessary. We’re not going to stop defending this historic law because we will always put people over profits!"
Organized as the Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California, the group led by community leaders and environmental justice organizations has grown to a large and formidable statewide coalition organized as CAvsBigOil.com and includes doctors, nurses, faith leaders, artists, and labor organizations united to protect California from Big Oil’s toxic pollution.
For more information about the Campaign for a Safe and Healthy California and our efforts to hold polluters accountable, visit our website at CAvsBigOil.com.
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Press Contact:Robin Swanson, robin@swansoncomm.net or Emma Lenz emma@swansoncomm.net