Los Angeles City Councilman Mitch Englander and City Attorney Mike Feuer called on state agencies Wednesday to immediately investigate a monthlong gas leak above Porter Ranch that has caused dozens of families to leave their homes.
“The residents and business owners of Porter Ranch should not continue to be subjected to an unabated gas leak that threatens public health and undermines their quality of life,” Feuer said in a statement. “We stand ready to work with all state and local agencies to find a swift solution to this serious problem.”
Both city and county officials have called on the state’s help to control the natural gas leak at Southern California Gas Co.’s Aliso Canyon storage facility in the Santa Susana Mountains. The L.A. County Board of Supervisors sent a letter Tuesday to Gov. Jerry Brown asking him to intercede.
Englander said the situation has become “beyond intolerable” as dozens of residents are unable to spend Thanksgiving in their homes.
Seventy-eight families have left their homes and have received free, temporary housing from the gas company. About 375 people have asked to be relocated, according to a SoCalGas spokesman.
Mercaptan, an additive to natural gas so that it can be detected that smells like rotten eggs, has caused residents to report headaches, nosebleeds, dizziness, stomach discomfort and respiratory problems.
More than 660 people have complained about the odor to the South Coast Air Quality Management District, which issued a notice of violation Monday to SoCalGas for causing a public nuisance.
County health officials say the exposure to very low amounts of mercaptan does not cause permanent or long-term health effects, but the short-term effects prompted them to require that the gas company provide free, temporary shelter to residents who want to leave their homes.
Englander and Feuer asked that the state Department of Gas, Oil and Geothermal Resources and the California Public Utilities Commission investigate the cause and develop an action plan to fix the leak and examine potential remedies to alleviate the effects of the leak.
SoCalGas is expected to appear before the L.A. City Council Tuesday. Gas company representatives answered to the supervisors this week. The L.A. County supervisors have requested that Department of Gas, Oil and Geothermal Resources representatives report on the gas leak at their meeting Tuesday.
Last week, that agency issued an emergency order demanding that the gas company provide testing results and data and submit plans to seal the leak and to construct a relief well.
The leak was discovered on Oct. 23. The gas company said attempts to inject a brine-like solution into the well to stop the leak have been unsuccessful so far. The utility is preparing to construct a relief well.
In response to feedback from public health officials, the AQMD and residents, SoCalGas said on its website that it is “putting on hold” plans to use a food-grade and biodegradable solution called Odex to break down the mercaptan in an effort to eliminate the odor. County health officials said they were skeptical of the ability of Odex to eliminate the odor.