Current:Home > InvestCalifornia governor, celebrities and activists launch campaign to protect law limiting oil wells-LoTradeCoin
California governor, celebrities and activists launch campaign to protect law limiting oil wells
View Date:2024-12-23 20:09:33
LOS ANGELES, Calif. (AP) — Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jane Fonda joined California Gov. Gavin Newsom and environmental advocates in Los Angeles on Friday to launch a campaign to keep a 2022 law banning new oil and gas wells near homes, schools and hospitals.
The law bans new wells within 3,200 feet (975 meters) of certain community sites, and proponents say it will protect residents from the health impacts of pollution. It hasn’t taken effect after the oil industry qualified a referendum to ask voters to overturn it in November.
At a Los Angeles park with an oil pump jack in the background behind him, Newsom said keeping the law is a key part of advancing the state’s climate goals.
“Big Oil is the polluting heart of this climate crisis,” Newsom said. “Thank you for being here today, tomorrow, and thank you for being there on Election Day, when we send a powerful message — not just here in the state of California, but heard all across the United States.”
Newsom is backing a lawsuit claiming oil and gas companies deceived the public about the risks of fossil fuels. It’s part of his efforts to fortify California’s status as a climate leader as the state transitions away from fossil-fuel powered cars, trucks and trains.
The California Independent Petroleum Association, which is pushing for voters to overturn the law, is concerned about how it will impact the oil and gas industry, which generates large amounts of state and local tax revenue.
Newsom signed a law last year that was inspired in part by oil industry tactics, which have come under scrutiny, to collect enough signatures to get the referendum on the ballot. The law requires top funders pushing a referendum proposal to overturn a law to be listed on voter information guides released by the state. It also requires a referendum on the ballot to ask voters to “keep the law” or “overturn the law,” a departure from asking them to vote “yes” to keep the law or “no” to block it.
Lawmakers introduced a bill last year that would have made oil companies pay up to $1 million to people with cancer or other health problems associated with a well, but it was blocked by the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Nalleli Cobo, an environmental activist who grew up near an oil well in Los Angeles, said she started experiencing nosebleeds, heart palpitations and headaches as a child and was diagnosed with reproductive cancer at age 19. She has since worked to fight against the health impacts of the oil industry and wants voters to keep the law limiting the location of new oil and gas wells.
“The oil industry has no place in our backyards, in our democracy or in our future,” she said.
___
Sophie Austin reported from Sacramento. Austin is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Austin on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter: @sophieadanna
veryGood! (7)
Related
- Georgia lawmaker proposes new gun safety policies after school shooting
- Jets OC Nathaniel Hackett says Sean Payton hasn't reached out to him after criticism
- Pakistan gives thousands of Afghans just days to leave — or face deportation back to the Taliban's Afghanistan
- How Ryan Reynolds Got Taylor Swift's Approval for Donna Kelce and Jake From State Farm NFL Moment
- Man is 'not dead anymore' after long battle with IRS, which mistakenly labeled him deceased
- Zendaya Is in Full Bloom With Curly Hair and a New Fierce Style
- Man arrested for murder of woman beaten to death in 1983
- Developed nations pledge $9.3 billion to global climate fund at gathering in Germany
- Wreck of Navy destroyer USS Edsall known as 'the dancing mouse' found 80 years after sinking
- New York pilot who pleads not guilty to stalking woman by plane is also accused of throwing tomatoes
Ranking
- Old Navy's Early Black Friday Deals Start at $1.97 -- Get Holiday-Ready Sweaters, Skirts, Puffers & More
- Study shows Powerball online buying is rising. See why else the jackpot has grown so high.
- These major cities have experienced the highest temperature increases in recent years
- U.S. F-16 fighter jet shoots down an armed Turkish drone over Syria
- PSA: Coach Outlet Has Stocking Stuffers, Gifts Under $100 & More for the Holidays RN (up to 60% Off)
- Roy Wood Jr. exits 'The Daily Show' amid Comedy Central permanent host search
- A man with a gun was arrested at the Wisconsin Capitol after asking to see the governor. He returned with an assault rifle.
- Norwegian author Jon Fosse wins Nobel Prize in Literature for 'innovative plays and prose'
Recommendation
-
12 college students charged with hate crimes after assault in Maryland
-
The McRib returns: Here are the ingredients that make up the iconic sandwich
-
Indianapolis police capture a cheeky monkey that escaped and went on the lam
-
Pat Fitzgerald sues Northwestern after firing in wake of hazing probe
-
Gun groups sue to overturn Maine’s new three-day waiting period to buy firearms
-
Mel Tucker skips sex harassment hearing, alleges new 'evidence' proves innocence
-
These major cities have experienced the highest temperature increases in recent years
-
Pregnant Model Maleesa Mooney's Cause of Death Revealed