The California Public Utilities Commission has reached an agreement with Southern California Gas Co. over the Aliso Canyon leak near Porter Ranch.
The leak began in October of 2015 and was finally capped in February 2016, allowing almost 100,000 tons of methane to escape into the air.
The settlement agreement requires the utility to pay $71 million to the Aliso Canyon Recovery Account.
The account, according to California Public Utilities Code §2104.7, was created “for purposes of mitigating impacts on local air quality, public health, and ratepayers resulting from the well failure at Aliso Canyon, including evaluation of any negative effects on public health.”
SoCal Gas cannot recover any of the $71 million from ratepayers, and cannot bill ratepayers for other financial losses due to the leak, including the 2021 $1.8 billion civil settlement that gave money to more the 35,000 individuals who claimed damages ranging from health issues to even deaths.
As part of the agreement, misdemeanor charges of failing to immediately report the gas leak, discharging air contaminants and failing to report the release of hazardous materials, were all dismissed.“We are pleased to resolve this important matter after almost eight years,” Chris Gilbride of SoCal Gas told Valley News Group.
Under an earlier settlement SoCal Gas was required to install a methane monitoring system at Aliso Canyon and retain an outside company to test and certify that the system is working properly. A weekly air monitoring meeting is held every Thursday at 8 am to discuss air monitoring results. The meeting link is https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83617852761.
Derek Fisher Joins Crespi as Coach
Crespi Carmelite High School in Encino recently announced Derek Fisher as Head Basketball Coach. Coach Fisher brings to Crespi his strong work ethic, leadership, and discipline that are rooted in his Christian faith.
Coach Fisher was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, and attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where he earned Sunbelt Conference Player of the Year during a stellar college career before being selected 24th overall by the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1996 NBA draft. Coach Fisher was part of five NBA Championship teams, all with the Lakers, during his 18 years in the NBA. In 2014, Coach Fisher began his coaching career as the Head Coach of the New York Knicks. He has also served as Head Coach and General Manager of the Los Angeles Sparks. Over the last year, Coach Fisher has invested his time coaching 8th grade middle school boys at Heritage Christian School and high school girls as part of his Team Derek Fisher Club in the Los Angeles area.
Coach Fisher adds, “My family and I are thankful and grateful for this opportunity to join the Crespi Family. We want to thank Dr. Kenneth Foersch, Dr. Liam Joyce, and Athletic Director Brian Bilek for their professionalism and collaboration. Coaching and teaching is a true passion and I look forward to continuing this focus on the next generation of young student-athletes. Go Crespi!!”
Dr. Kenneth Foersch, President of Crespi Carmelite High School told Valley News Group,
“On behalf of all of us at Crespi Carmelite High School, we are excited to work shoulder-to-shoulder with Coach Fisher to help form the young men we serve.”
