Many concerned citizens have inquired about just who is the Newport Banning Ranch LLC? The composition of the LLC is three corporations which are Aera Energy LLC, Cherokee LLC and Brooks Street. Looking at Aera Energy proves how a large corporation is playing an integral part in our small, tranquil community.
First, Aera Energy LLC is a joint venture between Shell Oil and Mobil Oil. Now what Aera Energy (Shell Oil and Mobil Oil) plan to do with Banning Ranch is the exact endeavor they are attempting in another Southern California community. The following was taken from the Aera Energy LLC Wikipedia site:
Aera Energy LLC is involved in a controversy over its attempts to develop ecologically important land in Southern Los Angeles County, California. Activists from local communities have fought for over 30 years to preserve this area, which they believe to be one of the last major wildlife corridors in Southern California.3
Aera Energy and its parent companies, Shell Oil and ExxonMobil, own 3,000 acres (12 km2) of land in the hills between Diamond Bar and Brea, California. Since 1894 the area has served as a low capacity, yet productive oil field and as a pastureland for cows. Since the cities of Brea and Diamond Bar have expanded immensely over the last 103 years, the land has inadvertently served as a wildlife corridor between the 4,000-acre (16 km2) preserve in Whittier and the 13,000-acre (53 km2) preserve in Chino Hills State Park. If the corridor is preserved it will serve as a link between nature preserves that extend from the San Gabriel River in the west to Temecula far in the southeast.
With diminished oil output and the escalating value of Southern California land, Aera has sought to develop their territory into a 3600 home residential area, complete with parks and a golf course. They plan to leave 55% of the site as open land to appease those seeking a corridor.
Beyond the environmental concern, opponents argue that the influx of new people will congest an area already seen as impacted. Many believe the development will further degrade the environment through increases in coastal runoff and more waste production, strain local water supplies and the transportation infrastructure, and overcrowd schools and other public services.
In 2003, Los Angeles and Orange Counties prepared a Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) to assess Aera's development proposal. It was determined that Aera's land is located in what Los Angeles County refers to as a Significant Ecological Area (SEA). In April 2006, the Technical Committee that analyzed the DEIR found Aera's development plan not to be in compliance with regulations governing SEA's. Aera was given three choices to continue: build with a negative recommendation from a large committee over their head, undertake the costly venture of replanning the development, or convince a city to annex the territory to remove its unincorporated status. Aera chose option three and turned to the city of Diamond Bar to annex the territory. Diamond Bar is not subject to the rules governing SEA's since Los Angeles only classifies unincorporated territory as Significant Ecological Areas. As of July 30, 2006, the annexation has not yet occurred.
As the matter has not been solved yet, several websites have been created to inform the public of both sides' arguments. Aera Energy's website details their development plan. Several coalitions have been formed to organize local community members' fight against Aera. Two of the most prominent are the Sierra Club Los Angeles Chapters' Save the Wildlife Corridor and Save the Missing Middle.
That is just one example how Aera is approaching the environment. You can read how Aera Energy was sued, and lost, for illegally dumping polluted waste water onto a farm field in Kern County.
Aera Energy does not appear to show any apprehension about going after open space for commercial and residential development purposes.
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