Oceanside Seeks Vote to Discourage Oil Drilling

Joining a growing chorus of opposition to offshore oil drilling, the City Council agreed Wednesday to place a measure on the November ballot that would ban construction of pipelines or refineries along the city’s coastline.

The council voted unanimously to ask city voters to adopt prohibitions against onshore facilities, a tack they hope will make it financially infeasible for oil companies to drill in waters off the San Diego County coast.

“I think this is such an important issue that the voters should have a say, so our legislators in Washington have the advantage of their opinion,” Councilman John MacDonald said.

In approving the measure for the November ballot, Oceanside becomes the second city in San Diego County to undertake an effort to use local powers to curb offshore oil drilling, an activity regulated by the federal government. Oceanside’s effort is modeled on a campaign by the San Diego City Council, which in early May approved a similar ballot measure.

In addition, the county Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved an ordinance prohibiting the processing, transportation or storage of oil or gas obtained off the coast of unincorporated areas of the county.

Although Oceanside council members initially considered adopting the ban as a municipal ordinance, they opted to place the issue on the ballot, reasoning that a vote of the people would have a more profound political impact on federal lawmakers and would stand up better if challenged in court. In addition, an ordinance could be amended by future councils, while a ballot proposition could only be rescinded by a vote of the people.

Despite the unanimous vote, Councilman Sam Williamson voiced concern about the ban, cautioning that the city might be inviting a worse fate if onshore oil facilities are prohibited.

To circumvent restrictions, oil companies might begin running tankers from refineries in the Los Angeles area or install offshore oil pipelines, Williamson noted. That could result in oil spills that might be more serious than problems associated with onshore facilities.

“They’re going to still transport that oil,” Williamson said. “If we’re put in a situation where we have a few spills, it could create some problems.”

Other council members said such concerns are valid but expressed hope that overwhelming opposition by voters to offshore oil drilling would convince the federal government to abandon its plans to sell offshore tracts to oil companies.

“I think we all recognize the potential pitfalls,” Mayor Larry Bagley said. “The federal government has taken the position that we don’t have a say. If all the communities along the coast adopt ordinances similar to this one, maybe they’ll listen.”

The city’s move is of particular significance because five tracts off Oceanside and Carlsbad, ranging from 3 to 25 miles off the coast, have been targeted for lease by the federal government. Moreover, Oceanside’s harbor has been listed in some federal studies as a possible site for a shipping base for offshore oil derricks.

Dana Whitson, Oceanside’s special projects director, said in a report to the council that even a voter-approved ban might fall prey if federal officials chose to preempt the local law because of concern for national interests. Nonetheless, a locally approved initiative might make federal preemption more difficult from a political standpoint, she said.

Officials have been eager to block offshore oil drilling because of concerns that spills could hurt the area’s multimillion-dollar tourism industry. In addition, they have argued that oil drilling could create navigational hazards for military and recreational vessels as well as worsening air and water quality.

Onshore bans similar to those adopted by San Diego and Oceanside have been approved by the cities of Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo.

The county supervisors, in passing their ordinance, balked at a proposal by Supervisor Susan Golding to place the issue on the ballot. A majority of the board members opposed Golding’s plan because the county controls no coastal land now that Solana Beach and Encinitas have incorporated.