Letters to the Editor: Study on methane leaks shows why expanded oil drilling would be ‘ruthless’
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To the editor: Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers proposing expanded oil drilling should look carefully at the “chemical soup” that leaks from oil wells into nearby communities (“Methane leaks at California oil facilities are also spewing toxic chemicals,” Aug. 26).
Benzene — just one of the dangerous chemicals discharged from dozens of major methane leaks in California — is a chemical linked to leukemia, blood disorders and reproductive harm. It’s horrifying to think of benzene invisibly stealing into our kids’ lung health in their preschool or elementary school, yet that’s exactly what this study shows.
Additional research shows California suffers more than any other state from air pollution related to oil and gas. This pollution causes more than 91,000 premature deaths nationwide each year, with Black and brown communities hit hardest.
Lawmakers should not exempt oil drilling from environmental review and community input. Expanding oil drilling in the face of the facts is reckless, ruthless and, for many, it’s deadly.
Shaye Wolf, Oakland
This writer is climate science director at the Center for Biological Diversity.
