Study Will Delay Mobil’s Pipeline

In a move that will further delay Mobil Oil’s plans to build a pipeline from Kern County to Torrance, federal officials will study the environmental impact of a portion of the line that would run through Angeles National Forest just north of the Santa Clarita Valley.

A final decision on Mobil’s proposal to build the 75-mile-long pipeline will be delayed at least until September because the 20-mile portion through the national forest will be included in an environmental review being conducted for the city of Los Angeles, said Ken Cude, an engineer in the city’s Department of Transportation.

Neighborhood groups that had urged the city to thoroughly review the project said they are pleased about the decision to study its impact on the national forest.

The forest’s supervisor, George Roby, decided the review was necessary to determine if the project would affect endangered plant species or damage previously unknown archeological sites, said Richard Borden, a spokesman for Angeles National Forest.

Borden said the pipeline would be constructed along a two-mile-wide corridor in the park that already contains electrical transmission lines, natural gas conduits and Mobil’s existing pipeline.

He said officials will hold a public meeting in Newhall in March before beginning the study.

When the study is completed, Roby will decide whether to allow Mobil to build the section of the pipeline that crosses the park, Borden said. In the city of Los Angeles, the ultimate decision rests with the Board of Transportation Commissioners, which will hold public hearings, Cude said.

Mobil proposed replacing its aging and leaky line with a new $75-million pipeline after state fire safety officials voiced concern about corrosion in the system.

On the Westside, the pipeline route follows Sepulveda Boulevard south from the San Fernando Valley to Culver City, then portions of Sawtelle and La Cienega boulevards to Inglewood.