Santa Barbara County Votes to Phase Out Oil Drilling

A major step toward protecting community health, air, water, and climate

Thanks to your support, on Tuesday, Oct. 21, the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors directed staff to develop an ordinance ending new oil drilling in the county. The ordinance process is expected to take about six months. County staff will also begin the process of phasing out existing oil operations by developing an amortization study of existing wells and conducting an environmental review.

More than 100 community members attended in person or virtually, with more than 50 providing public comment. The Community Environmental Council (CEC) partnered with the Sierra Club Santa Barbara-Ventura Chapter, the Environmental Defense Center, Climate First: Replacing Oil & Gas (CFROG), Los Padres ForestWatch, and more than 50 other organizations on this call to action.

CEC’s comments focused on the incompatibility of new oil drilling with California’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2045, the high greenhouse gas intensity of local oil, and the growing shift toward electric vehicles, which is reducing oil demand.

“This is one of the most significant policy wins in CEC’s 50+ year history,” said Sigrid Wright, CEC CEO and Executive Director. “We’ve been working to phase down fossil fuels in Santa Barbara County for decades, and this vote marks a powerful turning point. It reflects the community’s long-standing commitment to protecting our air, water, and climate — and moves us one step closer to a clean energy future.”

The Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 to move forward with these items. CEC thanks Supervisors Capps, Hartmann, and Lee for their votes on these momentous steps toward a cleaner, greener Santa Barbara County.