In the 1920s, the hot and arid Elk Hills west of Bakersfield were embroiled in the Teapot Dome oil lease scandal that ultimately tarnished the reputation of President Warren Harding. A century later, controversy over another energy project has returned to the region.
California’s first carbon capture and storage facility became operational in Kern County’s Elk Hills oil field in May, with the aim of eventually entombing millions of tons of carbon dioxide deep underground. The California Resources Corporation’s Carbon TerraVault 1 could become the first of many such facilities proposed for the state, including the Bay Area, and is intended to play a major role in California’s goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045. But the project is also facing a lawsuit from local and environmental groups, who are charging the county with failing to address pollution, health and safety concerns before officials allowed the project to move forward.
Chris Gould, executive vice president and chief sustainability officer at CRC, the state’s largest oil and gas company, said in a statement that the technology is safe and that any spill or leak of carbon dioxide or air pollutants like nitrogen oxides would be “unacceptable.” Citing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s support and a Stanford University and Energy Futures Initiative report from 2020, Gould said that carbon capture and storage in California could reduce emissions in the state by as much as 15%…