After a years-long battle, the Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday approved a plan to end oil drilling and pumping within city limits once and for all.
The Council voted unanimously on the ordinance, which halts new oil and gas drilling in the city and phases out existing production over the next 20 years. The ordinance applies to some 600 active and 1,200 idle oil wells, meaning the ones that are idle cannot be brought back into production.
Energy companies argue the action is an illegal taking of their property.
It makes L.A. the largest city in the United States to phase out existing oil wells, subject to approval by Mayor Karen Bass. Officials with the Mayor’s office said she intends to sign the ordinance as soon as possible.
“This isn’t a debate about whether fossil fuels are good or bad,” councilmember Traci Park said during Wednesday’s meeting, noting that the city has already committed to 100% clean electricity by 2035 and is investing heavily in renewables such as wind and solar. “That’s why it makes sense to stop new drilling, to stop certain expansion, and to phase out existing operations. It’s long past due.”
The ordinance declares all existing oil and gas activities as “nonconforming use,” meaning they can only operate during the 20-year phaseout period and are no longer compliant with current zoning. Existing wells cannot be re-drilled, deepened or expanded, though routine servicing and maintenance are allowed.
The action revives a landmark ban originally passed by the City Council in 2022, which was later derailed by a lawsuit from oil and gas producers in the area. The effort was seen as a historic move for a city built on the once-booming petroleum industry, where some residents living near oil and gas wells have long reported health issues, and where thousands of others receive oil royalty checks from the activity.
But oil companies sued, stating that state law goes beyond the city’s jurisdiction over petroleum production. An L.A. County Superior Court judge agreed, and the ban was struck down in 2024.
Soon after, however, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 3233, which expressly authorized local governments to regulate oil and gas operations in their communities. The law changed the legal landscape and paved the way for the city to try again to pass a ban.
Oil wells are found in nearly all parts of the city, but the bulk of the remaining active and idle wells are concentrated in the Harbor District near the Port of Los Angeles and in west-Central L.A. and Inglewood, according to the city’s dashboard. The massive Wilmington oil field near the port lies mainly beneath Long Beach, which is not covered by the city’s ordinance.
About two-thirds of the city’s active wells are operated by three companies: Warren Resources — which led the lawsuit against the city’s first ban — E&B Natural Resources Management Corp., and Tidelands Oil Production Co., according to the dashboard.
A representative for Warren Resources did not respond to a request for comment. But in a letter submitted to the city last December, the company argued it would constitute an unlawful taking of property, violate its business and royalty owners’ vested rights, and is supported by inadequate environmental review. They also argued that AB 3233 is itself unlawful and does not give the city authority over oil operations governed by state and federal law.
The company further maintained that there is a “lack of empirical evidence correlating oil and gas operations within the City of Los Angeles to widespread negative health impacts,” and said its operations do not emit significant quantities of air pollutants or pose a health risk to the public.
Studies have found oil wells can emit carcinogens and are linked to adverse health effects including respiratory issues, headaches, throat irritation and other problems. Ashley Hernandez, a Wilmington resident and organizer with the nonprofit Communities for a Better Environment, said residents there have suffered from severe health issues including asthma, dizziness, miscarriages, heart disease and cancer. She described black soot on window sills and foul odors drifting through the streets.
“This is environmental racism in action,” Hernandez said. “But today, the City Council made it possible for us to write a different story for our communities, our health and our future.”
STAND-L.A., a coalition of environmental justice groups that spent years advocating for the ban, noted that most of the city’s wells are concentrated in communities of color. Some group members said the action will create a “domino effect” for other municipalities.
“L.A. is now setting the precedent for how local governments can phase out and physically dismantle fossil fuel infrastructure, with public health and safety at the forefront,” said Wendy Miranda of the nonprofit Esperanza Community Housing.
The city’s most recent Climate Action Plan, released by Bass in April, explicitly calls for an ordinance to phase out urban oil and gas operations across the city. It also calls for new measures to clean up drill sites so the land can be safely reused for housing, parks and other community benefits.
Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky, who helped lead the effort to reinstate the ban, said it is likely to face legal challenges again, but that “the record is more clear than ever about why this approach is valid and urgently needed.”
“Oil drilling, we know, has no place in the city of Los Angeles,” she said.
The post Los Angeles approves ban on oil production after years-long fight appeared first on Los Angeles Times.
