User:Sunnyp46/Offshore oil and gas in California

Decommissioning Oil Platforms
Of the 23 oil platforms surrounding the coast of California, eight are no longer in usage or, due to terminated leases, are not allowed to resume production. The unused oil and gas platforms are in line for decommissioning in the near future. Along with these already abandoned oil platforms, the remaining facilities are expected to also require decommissioning as they reach 30-50 years in production

As of 2021, the Biden Administration announced that an environmental analysis would be conducted to establish the effects of complete or partial decommissioning of oil and gas platforms. The federal investigation, headed by the BSEE, will review oil facilities and platforms off of the Southern California coast and, subsequently, direct future action towards these offshore oil platforms.

The oil platforms are surrounded by various species of fish and wildlife, topical to California, that could be impacted by the complete removal of the platform structure Thus, alternative methods have been discussed and reviewed in place of traditional decommissioning. This includes the Rigs-to Reefs program that proposes to only partially remove parts of the oil platform, keeping a majority of the habitat intact for the wildlife.