The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) announced Thursday that it has agreed to a $71 million settlement with Southern California Gas Co (SoCalGas) over the 2015 Aliso Canyon leak near Porter Ranch that forced thousands of residents from their homes. , in what is considered the largest gas leak in United States history.
The settlement will take effect in 30 days, unless a party to the case chooses to appeal or a member of the CPUC requests a review.
“We are pleased to resolve this important matter after nearly eight years,” SoCalGas spokesman Chris Gilbride said in a statement.
The Southern California gas company announced settlements that are expected to substantially resolve all civil litigation against SoCalGas related to the 2015 Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility leak.
The Aliso Canyon leak began on October 23, 2015 and did not close until mid-February 2016. Nearly 100,000 tons of methane and other substances were released into the atmosphere over 118 days.
According to the CPUC, the settlement agreement announced Thursday requires SoCalGas to pay $71 million into the Aliso Canyon Recovery Account, which was created by the state Legislature to address issues stemming from the leak, including air quality issues and public health.
The utility is also prohibited from attempting to recover settlement costs from taxpayers, nor can it bill taxpayers for other financial implications of the leak, including a $1.8 billion civil settlement reached in 2021 to resolve damage claims for more than 35,000 people.
According to the CPUC, any request for rate increases from SoCalGas over the next five years must include a certificate from the company that the increases will not be used to offset the costs of any of the Aliso Canyon-related expenses specified in the agreement.
Those expenses include approximately $126 million in settlements with government agencies, $462 million in housing costs for residents displaced during the leak, $108 million for a study into the causes of the leak, and $376 million for attorney, litigation and other regulatory costs.
In September 2016, SoCalGas pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge for failing to promptly report the gas leak. Three other misdemeanor charges, one charge for discharging air pollutants and two more charges for failing to report the release of hazardous materials, were dismissed as part of the settlement.
Under its $4 million settlement agreement with prosecutors, SoCalGas was required to install and maintain an infrared methane monitoring system at the Aliso Canyon site, estimated to cost between $1.2 million and $1.5 million, and to hire a external company to test and certify that the monitoring system and real-time pressure monitors to be placed in each gas well are working properly.
The agreement also mandated the hiring of half a dozen full-time employees to operate and maintain the new leak detection systems 24 hours a day at a cost of about $2.25 million over three years.
The settlement also required the company to review and adopt new reporting policies for actual and threatened releases of hazardous materials to the appropriate agencies, and mandated training courses on proper reporting procedures for all utility company employees who They work at natural gas storage facilities within Los Angeles County.
