The Kern County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously this week to approve a revised oil and gas rezoning ordinance that could allow for nearly 2,700 new oil wells to be permitted each year.
- The vote followed more than three hours of public testimony and debate, with dozens of residents, industry leaders, and community advocates packing the chambers.
- The approved ordinance is backed by a Second Supplemental Recirculated Environmental Impact Report (SSREIR), a document over a decade in the making and totaling 74 binders of environmental review.
The Kern County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously this week to approve a revised oil and gas rezoning ordinance that could allow for nearly 2,700 new oil wells to be permitted each year.
The vote followed more than three hours of public testimony and debate, with dozens of residents, industry leaders, and community advocates packing the chambers. The approved ordinance is backed by a Second Supplemental Recirculated Environmental Impact Report (SSREIR), a document over a decade in the making and totaling 74 binders of environmental review.
Planning Director Lorelei Oviatt said the revisions address just three items required by court rulings: the appropriate use of agricultural easements, updated health risk assessments for multiple well sites, and the impact of water use on disadvantaged communities…