The closure follows a protracted enforcement campaign by the City of Los Angeles against AllenCo Energy, which has operated the site since 2009. The legal pressure peaked in 2020 when the company faced criminal misdemeanor charges and a formal order to plug its wells. According to the governor’s office, the company officially lost its operating status on Jan. 26 after years of what officials characterized as corporate stalling tactics.

Ending Decades of Neglect

The turning point for the facility occurred in 2022. State regulators from CalGEM and local safety officers used a court order to forcibly enter the site with bolt cutters to begin the decommissioning process. Wade Crowfoot, Secretary of the California Natural Resources Agency, stated that the plugging of these abandoned wells allows the neighborhood to move past a history of toxic exposure and neglect.

This enforcement action coincides with a broader state effort to address legacy energy infrastructure. Since January, California has plugged nearly 300 abandoned wells, totaling more than one million feet of underground remediation. However, the state is also balancing supply concerns under Senate Bill 237, which aims to stabilize the fuel supply chain.

Recent data from CalGEM/Wellstar highlights the shifting regulatory landscape:

• 32 new drilling permits have been issued so far this year.
• Current permit numbers have already surpassed the 17 total permits granted in 2025.
• State crews have filled more than one million feet of well space underground since the start of the year.

Governor Newsom described the completion of the AllenCo project as a "monumental achievement" for community activists who partnered with state agencies to force the closure. The site had been a focal point of civil enforcement actions since 2014, when the city first sued the operator for repeated violations of environmental protection laws.