KCET: Los Padres Nat'l Forest called Too Wild to Drill

The Wilderness Society says parts of the Los Padres National Forest is too wild to drill. How will the government and industry respond? They say that drilling should only be done in parts of the forest where there is already an impact from drilling - like the Sespe Wilderness in Ventura County. What do you think? Should more drilling happen in the Sespe in order to protect the untouched parts of Los Padres? Or should new drilling on national forest lands be banned altogether? Or should the industry be allowed to proceed as they have for decades, obtaining leases, and permits to drill wells as they explore for oil and gas that has been untapped to fulfill our ever increasing energy demands? 

Los Padres National Forest is one of the top places in America considered "too wild to drill,"according to a new report from The Wilderness Society. It highlights a dozen of the nation's most unique landscapes that it says are threatened by oil and gas drilling.

The Los Padres forest not only provides drinking water to the Santa Barbara area but also is well-known for two iconic animals, said Warren Alford, California regional representative for The Wilderness Society.

"The last [wild] California condor was captured here and became part of a successful reintroduction program," said Alford, "and the last California grizzly bear was captured and killed. And that's just an indication of how wild and how rugged this area is, and it's simply too wild to drill."


The oil industry already has 180 operating wells in less sensitive parts of the forest, including the Sespe Oil Field in Ventura County. Another 52,000 acres could be opened up to oil drilling in the future.
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