HOLLISTER, Calif.- Angry, outspoken residents are asked to keep it down, as talks on a controversial oil drilling technique continue in San Benito County. It's all about millions of barrels of oil that could be sitting right under the Monterey Shale. The county is in a race to be proactive and come up with a plan that keeps residents happy, while preserving their chance to prosper. But will residents and oil producers ever agree on how the county should move forward?
"Oil drilling and exploration is possible in places that were never thought possible before," said Aromas resident Wayne Norton.
That's the message some people are trying to get across to supervisors.
"Irrigation water is the lifeblood of our community in San Benito County," a resident said.
Right now only about 8,000 barrels of oil are produced there a year, compared to millions in other parts of the state. But because there's so much oil under the Monterey Shale, supervisors want to be certain any drilling is done right and creating a new ordinance may become part of the process. Residents want to make sure something like their drinking water, will never be affected.
People living on the land are worried about earthquakes, accidents and long-term affects. But oil producers said there's already enough regulation in California to make sure they are protected.
"There are a lot of items in there that are duplications of regulations that are already bring put forth," said Blair Knox of the California Independent Petroleum Association.
At Thursday night's meeting the debate went back and forth-one side accusing the other of having the wrong information.
"There's a lot of folks that have a lot of fear about really the unknown," said Steve Coombs, president of Patriot Resources, LLC.
The unknown is what the board said it's planning to investigate over the next few weeks.
