It didn’t take long to spoil any hope that public meetings about the future of the leaky natural-gas storage field in Aliso Canyon would produce a spirit of compromise between Southern California Gas Co. executives who want state approval to reopen the facility and San Fernando Valley residents who want it closed for good.
The first of two nights of hearings in Woodland Hills erupted in protests by residents, prompting state regulators to cut the scheduled three-hour meeting one hour short Wednesday. Although the second night went more smoothly, the tone had been set.
Disrupting a meeting meant to provide you with information and the chance to address public officials is a sign of desperation.
That’s an understandable emotion for residents of Porter Ranch, many of whom were sickened and had to temporarily move out of the area during the 112-day gas leak in 2015-16.
They’re afraid that regulators will give their OK to reopening the Aliso Canyon facility — one step toward its reactivation — before the cause of the notorious leak is even officially determined.
The editorial board has agreed with elected officials that no final decision to fully reactivate the gas storage field should be made before studies of the leak’s cause and health impacts are complete.
But we also have said that, as in any of Southern California’s disputes over commercial pollution, the goal must be to find a safe way for operations to continue.
This almost certainly means the answer with the SoCalGas storage field on the north edge of the San Fernando Valley will be found somewhere between the two extremes.
It’s in the hands of regulators, lawmakers and the legal system. All should strive to play fair with neighbors who want assurance that their community is safe and business leaders who worry the ongoing closure could lead to energy shortages and blackouts. And all should be held accountable by the public at large for their performance.
They must at least give everyone affected by the gas leak and its aftermath a chance to be heard. Porter Ranch residents can’t say they weren’t given that chance, even if some found a strange way to take advantage.
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