SR-511-000 (12)
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CITY OF SANTA MONICA
INTER-DEPARTMENT MEMORANDUM
DATE: Aprl1 19, 1985
TO: :-layor Reed
FROM: Clty Clerk
SUBJECT: Oll Dr~11~ng Opposltlon
Wh~le looklng for an attachment to your memo to Counell
on the above subject for conslderatlon at the Aprl1 23rd
~eet~ng, I found the attached statement wh~ch former
Mayor Edwards read In October 1984 before the U. S.
Comrn t tee.
I dld not copy thls for the entlre Councl1 packet, but
thought you mlght w~sh to have ~t ~n your f~le when the
subject lS before the Council.
AMS:JJ
a~J
Attachment
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STATEMENT OF KEN EDWARDS
MAYOR OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA
BEFORE THE U.S. BOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS
SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT, ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
OCTOBER 12, 1984
The Clty of Santa Monlca has a number of concerns regardIng Outer
Contlnental Shelf (OCS) oil development in Santa MonIca Bay.
WhIle we are pleased that the Congress has contInued the
moratorlum on oes development ln the Bay, thlS action only
extends protectlon for one yea!:, after whleh the Department of
Interlor (001) may attempt to re-open the Bay to OCS actlvitles.
Our Clty has conslstently opposed lease sales ln Santa Monlca Bay
because of the potentlal for alr pollutlon, vlsual degradatIon,
and spllls dlsruptlng a maJor recreatlon resource of the Southern
eallfornla reg lon - the beaches WhlCh presently serve tens of
mIllIons of people annually.
It has been very frustrating for us to have to ask that Santa
MonIca Bay be removed from conSIderation for DCS developrne~t
agaIn and agaln. Some of our specific concerns are set for th
below.
Moratorium
The moratorlum on Santa MonIca Bay lease sales should be
permanent. The economIC, scenlC and recreational resources of
the Bay should be permanently protected. The Clty of Santa
Konlca and concerned organlzatlons and resldents of the Los
Angeles area should not have to address this issue tlme and
agaln. A permanent mortor ium would prevent unproductive
expendlture of tlme and money by 011 companles, Federal, State
and local governments, and many ~nte[ested persons and
organlzat~ons.
The Clty believes that a Congressional oil leaSIng restrictIon
imposed through a budget appropriation is not the best approach
to offshore 011 and gas lease plannIng. However, the DOl has not
responded to local concerns or CongressIonal actIons in a
responSIble manner. The pattern of tract deletion at the early
stages of a sale and later re-actlvation of those leases
contlnues. Congressional actlon 1S the only way to ensore that
these areas can be protected. The oar must conduct lts leaslng
program In a manner that allows state and local governments to
adeqoately plan for handl1ng the leaSIng lmpacts. ThlS WIll
requlre a meanlngful re-evaluation of the Slze, tlming, and
location of future lease sales.
Because of
Congressional
OOl's record,
limitations on
the City
offshore 011
supports cont1nued
and gas leaSIng and
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recommends a permanent moratorium on development in Santa Monlca
Bay.
Slze of Sales
The CIty is seriously concerned about the pattern estab11shed by
Lease Sale SO of massive lease offer~ngs WhlCh do not lend
themselves to careful impact analysis.
The City strongly opposes lease sales of a Slze llke Lease Sale
SO wlthout an overall strategy for managlng the pace and extent
of exploratlon and development. Lease Sale 80 was comprised of
3.9 mill~on acres and 690 leases, which made it the largest lease
sale ever held off the west coast of the Unlted States.
Currently, there are 192 actIve leases offshore Californla
coverlng an area of approxlmately 1,013,386 acres. The lease
sale encompassed almost three times the acreage presently leased
for operatlons offshore Callfornla. The environmental analysls
for ttns sale used an "areawlde approaCh" which covers acreage
near to shore, acreage up to 200 mlles offshore, impacts along
the mainland and offshore lslands, and the entlre area from POInt
Conception to the Mexican border. Because of this sweepIng
approach, local governments and state agencles are forced to plan
for the cumulative impacts resulting from exploration and
productIon act~vities for broad areas from repeated sales. The
Depar tment of the Inter lor has not used systematic methods to
evaluate and mltigate cumulative impacts that will result from
the sales.
Need For Improved Plannin~ Process
The latest Lease Sale events demonstrate the need for a
comprehensive and coordlnated OCS planning process between the
Federal government, the State and local government. Greater
State and local government involvement ~n OCS planning could help
to resolve potential OCS lease sale problems at an early stage.
Such a mechanlsm should be developed before any cons1deratlon IS
given to OCS development in Santa Monica Bay.
The Department of the Interlor has failed to develop an overall
plan to aceommodate the increasing level of development Just from
the eXlst1ng 192 leases 1n the OCS offshore Cal~fornia. ThlS
open-ended approach vutual1y ignores plannlng for the support
facll~tles that are necessary to accommodate offshore 011
operatlons. The federal government has not lmposed lim1tatlons
on the number of marIne terminals, tank farms, or support
facllltles. Instead, State and local governments are forced to
accommodate this development as It comes through each new lease
sale. It is unwise to compound thIS sltuat1on, WhlCh ~s not now
under control, by offerIng extenslve adc11tlonal leases for sale.
Air Quallty
'I'he City is also concerned about air quality impacts. . Further
OCS development should not go forward until adequate a~r quality
standards are promulgated. The Los Angeles air basln already
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suffers from poor
Bay should occur
adequate mitigation
of prevaillng winds
air quallty and no lease sales in Santa Monica
in the absence of standards WhlCh ensure
of OCS generated air pollution, which because
will affect air quality of the basln.
Tourlsm
Our CIty 15 endowed with a unique environmental setting 1ncludlng
2.9 m11es of beaches and spectacular views of the Santa Monica
Mountalns, Mallbu, and Santa Monica Bay. Santa Moniea's coastal
area 1S an lmportant IlnK connect1ng the Los Angeles metropolltan
reg10n to the Coast. The Los Angeles freeway system ends at the
Pac1fIc Coast Highway just north of the Santa MonIca Pler,
br lnglng Vlsltors from the ent1re reglon to the Clty'S beaches.
Because of excellent public access, the Santa Monlca beach is the
most heaVIly utlllzed beach in the Los Angeles County, with over
20 mllllon vlsltors in 1980.
The Santa Monica coastal area 1S an important local and regIonal
environmental, aesthetic and economlC resource. Santa Monlca
prOVIdes an array of coastal recreatlonal and vlsltor-serving
fac11Itl€S. Chlef among these is the beach ltself. Related
faCllltles lnclude the Santa Mon1ca Pler, Palisades Park, hotels
and motels, restaurants and shopping facllities. These
facllltl€S are lmportant components of the local economy. The
City's potential for vlsltor-servlng facilities, with attendent
economlC and employment benefits, is not yet fully realized and
plans are in progress to promote additIonal uses which are
compatible wlth the Clty's environmental and economlC development
goals.
The Santa Monica Convention and Vlsltors Bureau comrnlssloned
Pannell Kerr Forester to establish the economic lmpact of tourIsm
on Santa Monlca. ThIS study found that tourism is a dlversifled
multl-mlllion dollar industry ln Santa Monlca. Total dIrect
visltor spendlng in this city is estlmated at $207,000,000 - an
average of $567,000 per day. Last year 2,870,000 people vlsited
Santa Monlca. They stayed an average of 2.29 days and each
person dally spent an average of $31.54. From records at the
Vlsltor Information Center, located ln Palisades Park, we know
that visltors came from all 50 states and from over BO COUntrles.
Below is a chart that breaks down the overall annual lmpact of
Vlsltors ln Santa Monica by where they stayed:
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VISITOR HOTEL/ HOME DAY
VOLUME MOTEL VISITOR VISITOR TOTAL
Number 316,000 459,000 2,095,000 2,870,000
Ratio 11% 26% 73% 100%
Average Party
Slze 1. 73 2.12 2.50 1.35
Average j Days 2.8 7.8 1.0 2.29
Average per Person
Spent per Day $52.00 $32.40 $21. 30 $31. 54
The total taxable vIsitor spend~ng in Santa Mon~ca lS
$195,900,000, and the estlmated tax revenue to Santa Monica is
$2,824,000. Or put ~n another way, for each dollar a v~sltor
spends ~n Santa Monica, 1.34 cents goes directly to our city.
A very large part of the jobs within the travel industry are in
the serVlce industry category. Since tourism is a
labor-intensive industry, travel-and-tourlsm hires large number
of teenagers, female heads of households, minorlties and the
elderly, many of whom m~9ht have few or no special12:ed SkIlls,
experIence or educational background.
It lS diffIcult to determlne the exact number of jobs which are
dlrectly produced by tourism in Santa MOnlca. The flgures shown
are only indicative, not deflnltive, and are meant to give an
understanding of the pOSSIble dlrect impact of tourism in Santa
MonIca.
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Employment in Categorles
Directly Generated from
Tourlsm
Ratlo of
eategory
Sub-Category Number Employment
Hotel/Motel 750 100%
Eatlng/Drlnking
Plaees 1,850 50%
Gas Statlons 100 33%
Food Stores 130 10%
M1SC. Shopplng
Goods 90 20%
Auto Rentals 150 75%
~AL 3,070 5%
TOTAL NUMBER OF ALL JOBS IN SANTA MONICA: 59,600
Source: Pannell Kerr Forster estimates from overall
provlded by the Reglonal Research Instltute of
Callfornla, Los Angeles.
flgures
Southern
This study also showed that 64% of visitors go to the beach, and
53% SIghtsee. This compares to 48% and 18%, respetlvely, for
Vlsltors to Los Angeles County. Clearly, the resources of the
beach and Santa' Monlca Bay are a maJor part of Santa Monlca' s
attractlon for vlsitors. 011 drllllng platforms in the Bay would
not only adversely affect visitors' aesthetic experience of our
Clty, but would also lead to potentIal harmful effects because of
oil spllls, alr pollutlon, and damage to the Bay's biota. It lS
lIKely that Santa Monlca's attractlon to visitors would be
dlmlnlshed, and the local economy dlsrupted.
Marlne Envlronment
The State of Callfornia has recently authorlzed a study of the
marlne enVlronment of the Bay. AB 2642, which was passed by the
legislature and signed by the Governor, directs the State
Department of FISh and Game to study marine Ilfe in the Bay. The
study is belng performed because of informatlon lndicatlng a
decllne in the quantity and quality of marine lIfe in the Bay.
The study will evaluate and maKe recommendatIons on this problem.
We belleve that OCS development and potential pollutIon from
drilling muds and oil spllls in the Bay could aggravate current
problems and lead to a deteriorated situation.
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Eacthquakes
If pern\1 tted, Des development in the Bay would be exposed to
potential damage from earthquakes. There are sevecal fault zones
under the Bay and we experience frequent (at least once a year)
earthquakes centered under the Bay. Earthquake damage coud lead
to pollutlon of the Bay and its beaches.
On-Shore Cumulatlve Impacts
The 001 cantlnues to offer leases at a tremendous pace, placing a
heavy burden on the State of Callfornia and local governments to
plan for thlS development and to provide the necessary
infrastructuce for water, roads, and other support needs.
Because the DOr stlll insists on offer ing large areas for sale,
the questl.on Of cumulatIve impacts cannot be adequately
addressed. Lease Sale 80 lS the most recent example of the
shortcamlngs in the areawlde lease sale approach. The
envlConrnental analysls of the 3.9 million acre Lease 80 Sale
futl.lely attempted to cover impacts near to shore, up to 200
miles offshore, along the malnland, on offshore islands, and over
the entire area from Point Concept1.on to the MeXIcan border.
These problems must be solved before the DOI commits to even
more OCS leas1.ng, especially in Santa Monlea Bay. Repeatedly
holding huge sales wl.thout addressing the cumulative impacts
stemmlng from these sales is not acceptable and is another reason
why OCS development in the Bay should not be permitted.
We believe that a permanent moratorium on OCS development In
Santa Monica Bay is the best course for your commlttee to
recommend. At a minimum, however, a flve-year moratorium should
be imposed to study and identlfy potential impacts and ml.tlgatlon
measures. The City of Santa Mon1ca would particlpate In such a
process if given an opportunity to do so. It is clear that local
governments should be afforded a greater role 1n the OCS
declslon-maklng process, Slnce the local env1ronment, economy and
qual1ty of life would be dlrectly affected.
Thank you for the opportun1ty to comment on thlS matter.
KE:PG:KW:lw
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