Elk Hills Early Transfer Lawsuit

[Center for Public Environmental Oversight <cpeo@cpeo.org>]

Hello Everyone,

A previous Dec, 19, 1997 Elk Hills Early Transfer posting by Lenny Siegel
talked about California's Governor, Pete Wilson, approving the state's
first early ("dirty") transfer of contaminated federal property on 
December 1, 1997:

"... Ironically, the first California application of Section 334 of the
1997 Defense Authorization Act is not a military base closure.
Consequently, it may not set a precedent for how the state will address
future proposal for early transfers."

Today I came across this article about the Elk Hills Transfer

Tony C.
CAREER/PRO

-----------------------------------------------------
Wednesday January 28, 10:21 pm Eastern Time

Suit to block Elk Hills oil sale to be filed Thurs

WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (Reuters) - A coalition of environmental groups and
Native Americans said they would file a lawsuit in federal court on
Thursday morning to block the U.S. government's $3.65 billion sale of
Elk Hills Naval Petroleum Reserve.

The Department of Energy approved the sale of the 47,000-acre petroleum
reserve last October to Occidental Petroleum Corp. (OXY - news), making
it the largest federal privatization in U.S. history.

The Elk Hills reserve, located near Bakersfield, California produces
more than 60,000 barrels of oil and 400 million cubic feet of natural
gas each day. DOE is planning to finalize by February 10.

The parties suing to stop the sale are the Sierra Club, the
Arizona-based Southwest Center for Biological Diversity, and the
governing council of the Kitanemuk and Yowlumne Tejon Indians.

They argue that the federal government failed to determine if the sale
would harm endangered species in the area, as well how historic Indian
grounds on the property would be affected.

``We request the court to order (DOE) to refrain from finalizing the
sale unless our concerns can be addressed,'' the parties said in
statement. ``Native Americans and environmentalists are concerned about
cultural resources and key habitat for endangered species at Elk
Hills,'' they added.

DOE has declined to comment on the lawsuit.

Daniel Rohlf, one of the attorneys in the case, said DOE failed to
consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on how four endangered
animals and two plant species living at Elk Hills would be affected by
the reserve's sale.

Such consultation is required by the federal Endangered Species Act, The
animals that would be affected are a rare fox, a lizard and two types of
kangaroo rats.

In addition, Rohlf said the sale would violate the National Historic
Preservation Act, because there are several historic Indian sites and
other buildings on the property.

The parties are worried that Occidental may sell unwanted property at
the reserve to private developers, or allow cattle grazing or
recreational use on the land -- all of which would threaten the
endangered animals and plants, as well as the historic sites.

Elk Hills is one of the eleven largest oil and natural gas fields in the
lower 48 States. The reserve was set aside in the early 1900s to ensure
a future source of crude oil for the U.S. Navy. However, those oil
supplies are now held in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve located in
Texas and Louisiana.

President Clinton included the sale of the reserve in his 1996 budget
proposal to help reduce the federal
deficit.