Porter Ranch residents push for Senate bill that would keep Aliso Canyon facility closed

NORTHRIDGE, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- About 100 people from Porter Ranch attended a meeting in Northridge Saturday regarding a Senate bill that could keep the Aliso Canyon gas storage facility closed.

Residents and activist groups headed to the meeting and plan to go to Sacramento on Tuesday where Senate Bill 57 will be heard by the energy committee. The bill proposes the facility remain closed until investigators can determine what caused a massive gas leak that sickened thousands in October 2015.

Sen. Henry Stern, who also attended and spoke at the meeting, said he hopes the committee members will move the bill forward.

"This is a real challenge - not just for the future of energy but for the future of our democracy. Are we going to listen to the people or are we going to listen to corporate special interests deciding our future? I think the question will be decided on Tuesday, and we're going to have to keep fighting," he said.

The investigation into the cause of the leak was ordered by state regulators and the state's public utilities commission. SoCalGas wants to restart operations as soon as possible.

If the bill is approved by the energy committee, it will go to the full Senate for a vote.

The storage facility gas leak is considered the largest in U.S. history, emitting around 100,000 tons of methane gas into the air and forcing thousands of families to relocate for months. The leak was capped in mid-February 2016.

SoCalGas and the South Coast Air Quality Management District also reached an $8.5 million settlement over the leak.