Wilmington Oil Field

I’m confused. Whenever I see shows like «Globe Trekker» that will do an episode about Los Angeles and select parts of Southern California they tend to include a segment on the «oil fields of Long Beach.»
I mean, I’ve been to Oildale near Bakersfield and parts of Texas that just densely packed with oil wells surrounded by ground that looks like it would never be green again. They all have an eerie feel about them.
Long Beach wells are in random places. When Ray Bradbury spoke of story ideas at LBCC, he mentioned passing a cemetery with a few rocking away along the outskirts and it made him think of a dystopian world where they would be pumping oil from the graves of long dead humans. Some of the wells are along parks, golf courses, right in front of restaurants, and hiding out in the open as fantasy islands right off the coast.
Have you seen those bad boys? They have waterfalls, colorful lights, and buildings that look like hotel skyscrapers on topical beaches. I sometimes stare at them while hanging around Bluff Park.
I suppose how normal they all seem to those of us who’ve lived with them for decades might be construed as a curiosity for everyone else.

did the thums tour
awesome area to tour and get info

About 300 of the wells are idle. Gas is also recovered through steam or waterflooding. Gradual bowl-​shaped cave-​ins 30 feet long were observed by the early 1940’s. Including artificial islands off Long Beach Harbor, this 77 year-​old oil field is the third largest in the country, with 700 wells continuously producing 15 million barrels each year (7200 barrels daily according to the LA Times). It spans 39 square miles east of Palos Verdes through San Pedro Bay towards Seal Beach.
Occidental thinks it can get the 221 million barrels remaining by injecting carbon dioxide or water into the oil wells, even though the most recent contract guarantees that they only get 5% of the revenue [95% goes to the State]. Segments I and II/​West Wilmington unit are controlled by the city of Long Beach. The original 6,000 wells were first drilled by General Petroleum, now Exxon Mobil. This was the biggest oil discovery for Southern California. When I was younger, I thought the lights of the refineries off the 405 or 710 resembled lit giant church votive stands.