HUNTINGTON BEACH : City to Rent Portion of Methane Property

While the city decides how to deal with high levels of methane recently discovered beneath one of its properties, a portion of the land will be rented to an oil firm for up to 18 months.

Under a license agreement the City Council approved Monday, the Angus Petroleum Corp. will pay the city $1,000 per month to use a 200-foot by 300-foot portion of the methane-tainted site.

Angus plans to use the area to dry residual soil from a nearby drilling project, said Louis Sandoval, the city’s director of public works.

Since landfills will not accept wet materials, the damp soil churned up during oil drilling must be dried before it can be dumped, Sandoval said. There is too little space, however, at Angus’ Springfield project site, about half a mile east of City Hall, to spread and dry the dirt shavings, he said.

Angus proposed to pay the city for drying space. City officials believe that none of the materials will be toxic or hazardous, he said.

The agreement enables the city to earn some money from the land, northeast of Golden West Street and Talbert Avenue, while officials decide how to alleviate the methane problem.

The area, a former Orange County landfill, and the adjacent razed Ocean View Mushroom Farm site had been targeted for use as a golf course and for an expansion of the nearby Driftwood mobile home park. The city is obligated under a relocation agreement to build the course for the park residents.

However, those plans hit a roadblock earlier this year when an environmental consultant discovered the former landfill site conceals excessive levels of methane. Capping or removing the gas would cost the city between $1 million and $8 million, the report stated.