KERN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA (June 5, 2024)–In response to the news that California Geologic Energy Management Division (CalGEM) issued at least 13 new drilling permits during the month of May, Greenpeace USA’s California Climate Director, Zachary Norris, said: “After a nine-month hiatus, CalGEM is back to their old permitting ways. Instead of handing a lifeline to a dying industry, Governor Newsom’s agency could – and should – be charting our state’s course toward a healthy, livable future where we can all thrive.
“The raging wildfires, unprecedented flooding, and intense heatwaves of the past few years have completely transformed our state. These events are clear signs that instead of greenlighting new oil and gas projects, we need to stop drilling and insist that fossil fuel companies start paying to clean up their mess. Californians deserve cleaner, greener, safer neighborhoods, not a legacy of toxic mess and destruction.”
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Contact: Katie Nelson, Greenpeace USA Senior Communications Specialist, [email protected], +1 (678) 644-1681
Greenpeace USA is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.
