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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBLM_2019_OppositionLetterCity of San Luis Obispo, Office of the City Council, 990 Palm Street, San Luis Obispo, CA, 93401-3249, 805.781.7114, slocity.org May 21, 2019 The Honorable David Bernhardt, Secretary U.S. Department of the Interior 1849 C Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20240 RE: Commitment to Opposing New Oil Leases on Federal Lands Dear Secretary Bernhardt: The City of San Luis Obispo values our state’s federal lands, which provide habitat to a vast array of wildlife that depend on a healthy and clean environment. The City’s residents and visitors also enjoy our region’s publicly-owned beaches, mountains, wild places and abundance of diverse resources for recreation and tourism, which comprise a large part of the City' s economy. Oil drilling, production and transport presents a clear and ever-present danger to the health and safety of residents, businesses, and our local economy. Many communities living near federal lands and mineral estates that may be developed for oil and gas production already bear a heavy and unjust pollution burden, including from air and water pollution. The Bureau of Land Management proposal stands in conflict with standing County of San Luis Obispo and City of San Luis Obispo’s Policy, and while all new oil and gas drilling in the Bakersfield Planning Area threatens our scenic and biological resources, water supply, water quality, air quality, climate, seismicity, and rural and agricultural way of life, there are areas that BLM proposes to open for drilling and fracking that are of particular local concern (e.g., City of San Luis Obispo Irish Hills Natural Reserve and Cayucos & Whale Rock Reservoir). Opening these areas for oil and gas development— including well stimulation—puts our drinking water supplies, air quality, recreational opportunities, public health, tourism industry, and rural and agricultural way of life at risk; and threatens habitat for endangered and threatened species. For these reasons, the City of San Luis Obispo respectfully requests that the Bureau of Land Management abandon its proposal and not seek to open public lands and mineral estate in the Bakersfield Planning Area for new oil and gas leases. Sincerely, Heidi Harmon Mayor City of San Luis Obispo Cc: Bureau of Land Management, Bakersfield Field Office, Attn: Bakersfield Hydraulic Fracturing Analysis, 3801 Pegasus Drive, Bakersfield, CA 93308 San Luis Obispo City Council