Letter: Oil is the most environmentally, socially responsible source of energy
To the editor,
Imagine a day when oil & gas production ceases in San Luis Obispo County. How might our environment change? For one, 120+ employees and contractors would be out of a job. Mineral owners’ income would stop, impacting families and retirees. The 1,000-acre property now in production along Price Canyon Road may be a tempting candidate for development. And the 500,000 gallons of highly purified water supplied each day from the Arroyo Grande Oil Field Water Reclamation Facility into Pismo Creek would cease to flow.
Meanwhile, our thirst for hydrocarbon products would persist just as it does today. Asphalt paving for the county road system, building materials, plastics, beauty products, cell phones and solar panel components, even deodorants are all derived from oil. So where would that raw material come from if we banned local oil production? From overseas diesel-fueled tankers running up and down our coastline, that’s where. From oil produced in countries like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Russia. Countries with poor human rights records, with scarce environmental regulations, and away from public input and oversight.
Sustaining local oil production is worthwhile. It creates head-of-household jobs for local families, and provides us with the most environmentally and socially responsible source of energy and raw materials for our modern lives.
Christine Halley
Bakersfield
