SANTA BARBARA — It was cast as an unprecedented compromise, a deal that would allow a Texas oil company to sink new wells off the Santa Barbara coast in return for an agreement to shut down all four of its offshore platforms within 13 years.
But the State Lands Commission on Thursday killed the deal crafted by Santa Barbara's most vociferous anti-oil groups and Houston-based Plains Exploration and Production, closing the door on a plan that would have been the first approval to drill for oil in state waters since 1969.
Lt. Gov. John Garamendi, one of three members of the lands panel, said allowing any new drilling in state waters would suggest the state welcomes offshore drilling and send a come-hither message to other oil companies. His view was echoed by legislators from coastal districts, including Assemblyman Pedro Nava, who represents Santa Barbara.
Approval would have been "a message heard very, very clearly by those who call for 'drill, baby, drill,' " said Garamendi, a former Interior Department official who is running for governor.
But a parade of local officials, residents and environmental activists insisted the plan would have advanced efforts to protect the coast by eventually closing four of the region's 20 platforms.
"For the first time in history, the public and the state will be able to shut down existing oil production," argued Linda Krop, an attorney for the Environmental Defense Center and one of the people behind the proposal. "Without this project, they'll continue indefinitely -- perhaps another 40 years."
The 2-1 vote to reject the plan came after more than five hours of discussion. Joining Garamendi was state Controller John Chiang, who cast his vote without comment. Representing the state finance department, deputy director Tom Sheehy voted for the proposal, citing the revenues that would have poured into the state treasury from oil royalties.
The commission has jurisdiction over oil extracted from state lands and oversees more than a thousand wells.
Its hearing in a Santa Barbara waterfront hotel was especially charged, pitting an odd-bedfellows alliance of environmental groups and an oil firm against Garamendi and state lawmakers who represent coastal districts. It came a day after the 40th anniversary of the disastrous Santa Barbara oil spill -- a pivotal event in the history of the region and a big-bang moment for the modern environmental movement.
