Southern California Gas Company to host meetings on controversial Ventura gas compressor
A series of community meetings on a controversial Ventura gas compressor site are planned this week as part of Southern California Gas Company's application to expand the facility.
A virtual meeting is set for 10 a.m. Thursday. In-person meetings are set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday and 10 a.m. Saturday at De Anza Academy of Technology & the Arts, 260 Cameron St., Ventura.
The meetings will discuss the application process and take public questions and comments, said Marissa Girolamo, SoCalGas spokeswoman.
It is unclear when construction will start on the project because the utility needs approval from the California Public Utilities Commission. The application to the commission, which requires an environmental and cost review, is due in April.
The utility company plans to replace the three gas compressors on the site at 1555 North Olive St., which has been operating since 1923, with four new ones that have more horsepower. The CPUC approved the plan in 2019 but the project stalled following community opposition.
Some residents, activists and city officials have expressed anger over the gas compressor project due to air quality and public safety concerns, including its proximity to an elementary school and homes. The compressor is located in a residential neighborhood in west Ventura across from E.P. Foster Elementary School. In March 2022, about 40 people protested a SoCalGas community forum on the gas compressor.
Tomás Rebecchi, a local organizer for the national nonprofit Food & Water Watch, said the fight to stop the compressor wasn't over and another protest was being discussed. Rebecchi said his group still wants a full environmental impact report.
Work around the gas compressor is continuing. A project to remove contaminated soil will start from mid-June to the end of July, Girolamo said. The soil is associated with "historical" industrial property uses, according to a SoCalGas statement, and the work will include on-site air monitoring.
Methane monitoring equipment was installed on all four sides of the station in November, Girolamo said. Methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas. In 2017, the gas compressor was cited in a NASA study as a "super emitter" of methane. The study prompted the gas company to fix the methane leak.
SoCalGas will operate the monitoring equipment for about a year before the utility can share methane data online with the public, she said.
To register for the virtual or in-person meeting, visit SoCalGas.com/VenturaOpenHouse.
Wes Woods II covers West County for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at wesley.woodsii@vcstar.com, 805-437-0262 or @JournoWes.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: SoCalGas to host meetings on gas compressor site in Ventura
