Thread by @mikebonin

Tomorrow is a huge day for environmental justice. I'll eagerly vote YES on @STAND_LA legislation that will phase out oil and gas extraction & storage in LA.

I'm proud to be one of its first supporters -- and I salute the relentless grassroots advocates who made it happen.

Since 2014, neighbors and advocates have been demanding “no drilling where we’re living” and calling for an end to the urban oil fields that have caused air pollution disproportionately affecting predominantly Latino and Black neighborhoods for generations.

What started as a longshot effort to create a buffer zone between oil drilling and homes has become broad, landmark legislation that begins the process of getting the dirty fossil fuel industry out of neighborhoods and our city.

This progress was achieved because of @PSRLA, @CBECal, @BW4WLA, @EsperanzaCHC, @RedeemerCP, @HolmanUMC, @SCOPE_LA @LibertyHill. It was their tireless advocacy for and with frontline communities that got us here, and I am enormously grateful for all of the partners in this effort.

I recall meetings early in this effort, where neighbors who have suffered from the harmful damage of oil and gas wells told moving personal stories about how wells affect their lives. It is why I was determined to act, and why I co-sponsored the original @STAND_LA proposal.

Since then, the scope of the proposal has gotten much bigger. Tomorrow the City Council will vote to direct the City Attorney to draft a new law that will prevent any new oil and gas wells in Los Angeles, and begin the process of phasing out all the existing wells.

Advocates made this happen through persistent effort and smart organizing. This is a major action, and it is long overdue. It should not have taken the City years. Combating the climate crisis and fighting environmental injustice needs to happen with much greater urgency.

To me, @STAND_LA has always been “the #GreenNewDeal made real” - a chance to protect public health and right an environmental injustice by moving beyond dirty and dangerous fossil fuels. It is the most important environmental justice effort in our city’s recent history.

Tomorrow’s vote is a milestone. I celebrate this progress. I thank those who made it possible. And I look forward to continuing this work.