• Following a year marked by beach closures and health warnings at a Santa Barbara County beach sullied by leaking crude oil, Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) recently introduced a bill to monitor and cap California’s old, abandoned, and leaking oil wells.
Senate Bill 900, the Coast Oil Well Cleanup Act, would require that the California State Lands Commission plug very old “orphaned” oil wells in California waters when the original oil company that operated the well is out of business and can’t be held responsible. It will also require an in-depth study of similarly abandoned and unused oil wells along the California coast.
In addition, the bill would require the removal of coastal hazards such as wood and steel pilings, railroad irons, pipelines, wooden beams, and other hazards. It would also require the monitoring and studying of the phenomenon known as natural seepage.
• As part of a series of visits throughout the Central Coast highlighting federal investments in the community, on Jan. 20 Rep. Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara) paid a visit to Marian Regional Medical Center to tour the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
In 2009, Capps helped Marian secure $500,000 in federal funding to develop the facility, which enables mothers and their newborns to remain in their community rather than having to be transported to other area hospitals for specialized care. During the visit, Capps met with staff and viewed several demonstrations of the care offered at the facility.
“For too long, Santa Maria families lacked a local option in care for high-risk pregnancies or sick newborns,” Capps said in a press release. “Our community highlighted this need, and I was proud to work together to secure federal resources to bring a highly skilled NICU to our community.”
In the coming year, Capps will be visiting a variety of public works and community projects that she supported and assisted in securing federal funding for during her time in office. Capps will use the visits to get updates on the projects as well as to thank staff and volunteers at the facilities for their service and dedication to our local community.
This article appears in Jan 28 – Feb 4, 2016.