LACCD Board of Trustees Unanimously Approves Resolution Supporting Moratorium on Fracking

The Board of Trustees of the Los Angeles Community College District unanimously approved a resolution supporting a moratorium on fracking on Wednesday.

According to an LACCD release, one of its specific concerns is the Inglewood Oil Field, located in a heavily populated area adjacent to West Los Angeles College in Culver City.

Fracking - hydraulic fracturing - is a controversial technique used to increase the amount of oil or natural gas extracted from the ground by injecting pressurized chemical additives in order to create fractures in subsurface rock or other tight geological formations.

The LACCD stated in an official release, “There is evidence this process has resulted in unintended consequences. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has linked contaminated ground water in Pavillion, Wyoming to fracking. The U.S. Geological Survey supports the assertion that fracking can cause micro earthquakes, a frightening possibility in an area like Southern California, situated above deep fault lines.”

Following Wednesday’s meeting, Trustee Mona Field – who together with fellow trustee Nancy Pearlman presented the resolution – said, “I am so proud that our district continues to set trends in protecting the environment. I hope that, just as our green building initiative has been widely imitated, others will now follow our lead in seeking a moratorium on the dangerous practice of fracking.”

Pearlman added, “Studies have shown that fracking is unacceptable for humans and the environment. Alternatives must be found that are ecological and safe.”

The West Los Angeles College Work Environment Committee has already passed a resolution asking for air testing on its campus to determine the effects of fracking.

RELATED ARTICLE: Culver City Groups Joining Fracking Seminar

In passing this resolution, the LACCD Board of Trustees joins the Culver City Council and the Culver City Unified School District in urging Governor Jerry Brown, the state legislature and the state’s Department of Conservation/Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources to institute a moratorium on fracking and the disposal of fracking wastewater pending further studies of the practice and the establishment of strict regulations.

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