What Local Climate Action Looks Like

At a press conference held on the steps of Los Angeles City Hall, Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez (District 1) joined members of the Sunrise Movement LA, STAND LA, Esperanza Community Housing Corporation , the Vista Hermosa Heights Community Group, and the Los Angeles Neighborhood Council Sustainability Alliance to speak out against systemic injustices affecting the city’s most vulnerable neighborhoods.

“Decades of environmental racism have left too many communities with toxic brownfields, hazardous oil wells, and unchecked air pollution,” Hernandez said.

Los Angeles, once a hub of oil production, now grapples with over 5,000 active, idle, or abandoned oil wells scattered across its neighborhoods, releasing toxic chemicals like methane and benzene that endanger public health.

Outdated zoning laws and lax permitting processes have allowed industrial projects, such as warehouses and trucking depots, to encroach on residential areas, exacerbating pollution and health risks.

The event took place on December 3, 2024, and featured testimonies from community leaders who shared firsthand experiences of living near brownfield sites—neglected areas with uncapped oil wells and industrial contamination.

Their stories highlighted the resilience of the impacted communities and the urgent need for reforms that prioritize public health over profit.

Lincoln Heights: Battling Harmful Industrial Developments

Dr. Rocio Rivas , Los Angeles Unified School District Board Member for District 2, highlighted the dangers of a proposed diesel trucking depot at 3505 Pasadena Avenue.

The project would bring hundreds of smog-spewing diesel trucks rumbling past homes and Hillside Elementary School in a community already struggling with pollution and contaminated land. 

“This isn’t just about noise or traffic,” Dr. Rivas said. “It’s about the air our children breathe, their health, and the future of Lincoln Heights.” She emphasized that this project represents a broader pattern of environmental injustice across Los Angeles, particularly in low-income communities and communities of color.

The depot site would be built on “unremediated” land contaminated by decades of industrial dry-cleaning operations, posing additional public health risks.

Dr. Rivas described the project as a “recipe for disaster,” and stressed the need for stronger protections to prevent neighborhoods from becoming dumping grounds for industrial developments.

Michael Henry Hayden of the Lincoln Heights Community Coalition pointed out that developers had already been allowed to build 468 apartments near that site, despite being flagged as a brownfield. They bypassed recommendations for further testing and proceeded without any requirement for remediation or cleanup.

The proposed depot site, once home to Welch’s Dry Cleaning, the largest industrial dry cleaner in the United States, remains highly contaminated. It still fails to meet state cleanup standards.

Hayden criticized the City’s outdated zoning and permitting processes, which allow harmful developments to proceed unchecked. Developers often target contaminated sites because they are cheaper to acquire.

“This clearly shows that developers understand the dangers,” Hayden said, “they exploit the City's permissive planning process to maximize their profits at the expense of the communities they endanger too often: low-income communities of color who suffer the worst consequences of these systemic failures.” 

University Park: The Human Cost of Oil Wells 

Nancy Halpern Ibrahim, MPH , Executive Director of Esperanza Community Housing, and Sandra Serrano, a community advocate, shared harrowing accounts of life near the AllenCo Energy oil site, in neighborhoods such as University Park.

This densely populated neighborhood has endured the lasting effects of industrial neglect, with over 21 oil wells abandoned by AllenCo, leaving a toxic legacy that continues to harm residents.

They recounted the health crisis that gripped residents in 2010, with people experiencing severe nosebleeds, asthma, miscarriages, and rising cancer rates linked to the toxic fumes emitted by AllenCo’s operations. 

“It’s not the same thing to hear about these things as it is to live them firsthand,” Serrano said, speaking of the emotional toll of witnessing such widespread suffering. 

Esperanza’s community health workers filed over 350 air quality complaints with the South Coast Air Quality Management District, building a strong case that led to AllenCo’s shutdown in 2013. In 2018, the company faced 25 criminal charges for failing to properly close its wells. 

Yet, AllenCo got off with a mere $20,000 settlement, which Ibrahim likened to nothing more than a smack on the wrist given the damage they inflicted. 

“How much does health actually cost?” Serrano asked, challenging the city to value the lives of its residents over corporate profits. 

After extracting as much profit as possible, AllenCo declared bankruptcy, effectively evading responsibility for properly shutting down its wells or addressing the long-term damage it caused. 

The lingering presence of AllenCo’s wells continues to release harmful substances into the surrounding community. These toxins pose not only a health crisis but also a financial burden, as the cleanup costs will likely fall on taxpayers.

Vista Hermosa: Living in a Sacrifice Zone

Rosalinda Morales, co-founder of the Vista Hermosa Heights Community Group, shared her experience as a lifelong resident of a neighborhood plagued by uncapped oil wells and neglect.

Vista Hermosa, historically known as Temple Beaudry, sits among the oldest known oil wells in the US. Morales called the area “the black stain in the backyard of City Hall.”

The pervasive smell of rotten eggs from methane gas was a constant in Morales’ upbringing. Over time, the community realized this wasn’t just an unpleasant odor but evidence of severe environmental harm.

Morales shared the personal toll this has taken on her family: her mother, a devoted gardener, developed cancer from exposure to oil toxins in the soil, a tragedy that claimed her life. Morales herself and many neighbors suffer from asthma and respiratory issues. 

The community’s 900+ uncapped wells release dangerous chemicals like methane and hydrogen sulfide into the air, water, and soil, causing chronic illnesses and fire hazards. Many wells, drilled before modern regulations, remain unmapped and abandoned.

Developers, eager to meet Los Angeles’s housing demand, exploit gaps in oversight to secure permits without addressing contamination.

“New homes and businesses are being built on top of uncapped oil wells, trapping dangerous gases in these buildings,” Morales explained, as is the case with apartment complexes like Firmin Court where gas leaks frequently trigger methane alarms.

Morales demanded accountability from developers and city leaders, stating, “We are being poisoned every day…Vista Hermosa has been labeled a sacrifice zone…but we will not be silent. We will not be ignored.”

Legislative Solutions: From Grassroots to Governance

The press conference celebrated the community’s victory in halting the proposed Lincoln Heights diesel trucking depot and highlighted broader legislative efforts to address systemic environmental injustices.

In October 2024, Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez enacted an Interim Control Ordinance (ICO) imposing stricter regulations on warehouses over 15,000 square feet in the Cornfield Arroyo Seco area. 

While the proposed warehouse initially qualified for "by-right" development under existing zoning laws—requiring no city approval—the developer’s permit expired in December 2024 due to incomplete paperwork.

As a result, the project now falls under the ICO’s updated regulations, requiring a conditional use permit, public hearings, and community review. This victory underscores the power of grassroots organizing and the importance of community input in preventing harmful developments.

Hernandez also introduced a motion to address Los Angeles’ 5,000+ active, idle, or abandoned oil wells, which pose significant health and safety risks to over 3.8 million residents living within a quarter mile of these sites. 

Initially drafted by the LA Neighborhood Council Sustainability Alliance, the finalized, expanded motion calls for rigorous environmental reviews and safety measures for developments near oil wells to be approved, methane gas monitoring, and stricter design and remediation standards.

It also proposes accountability measures for developers, enhanced community involvement, and citywide oil well advisory notices to ensure transparency and protect public health.

“We believe that the people who are closest to the problems are also closest to the solutions,” Hernandez said, “and so when we develop this legislation, we do it through co-governance alongside directly impacted communities.

While these motions are critical first steps, they are not yet binding laws. A motion serves as a formal directive for city agencies to investigate and propose solutions, but further action is required to turn these proposals into enforceable legislation.

This involves assessing current practices, identifying gaps, and presenting recommendations to the City Council. Collaboration, sustained advocacy, and public pressure will be essential to ensure these motions lead to lasting change.

“When we center directly impacted communities and prioritize people over profit, we can work towards meaningful solutions,” Hernandez said.