Last November, Monterey County voters passed a fracking ban known as Measure Z with 56 percent of the vote, despite being outspent 30-to-1 by the oil industry.
Passing Measure Z makes Monterey the sixth California county to ban fracking, but the first to face a serious legal challenge.
A month after the voters spoke, the two biggest companies drilling in Central California’s San Ardo fields—Chevron and Shell and ExxonMobil-owned Aera Energy—both filed lawsuits against Monterey County to block implementation of Measure Z, alleging that it restricts how they can use their property.
In June 2017, the Measure Z legal team and supporters attended a hearing in Superior Court in Monterey, CA to defend the will of the people against what had grown from two to six lawsuits filed by the oily challengers of Measure Z. Monterey County Superior Court Judge Thomas Wills consolidated the six lawsuits and set court proceedings for November 13.
Protect Monterey County (PMC) assembled a powerful legal team to intervene and help Monterey County defend Measure Z. They are confident that their initiative is based on well-established legal precedent and the outcome of the case will be positive. The legal team includes attorneys from Stanford Environmental Law Clinic, Center for Biological Diversity, Robins Kaplan, and Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger.
These lawyers have been freely donating hours to Measure Z defense and need our support. Please consider making a donation to the Measure Z legal defense fund. Send a check to Protect Monterey County (P.O. Box 1946, Monterey, CA 93942), or donate online at PMCDONATE.
Read Monterey Herald coverage about opening arguments on November 13th here.
WHEN
Monday, November 13, 9 AM – several days
WHERE
Montery County Superior Court
1200 Aguajito Rd.
Monterey