Ballona Wetlands 'Musical Protest' Planned In Playa Del Rey

PLAYA DEL REY, CA — An environmental activist and LA City Council candidate who was threatened arrest by a SoCalGas worker during a Facebook Live video earlier this month will return to the same site in Playa del Rey Thursday for a 'musical protest' joined by other activists.

A SoCalGas security guard threatened activist and LA City Council candidate Molly Basler on Oct. 5, calling Los Angeles police and threatening to arrest her for appearing at the Ballona Wetlands. Basler was on a Facebook Live video hosted by Jane Unchained News—hosted by Jane Velez-Mitchell—with local activists and environmentalists, documenting crews working in the oil fields and standing along the road when a security guard at the oil field site approached her.

Basler is one of many locals, activists and environmentalists calling for answers about what's happening at the site, accusing the company of pursuing the project while the public is focused on the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis. Locals believe there is increased activity at the ecological reserve, alleging the gas company is pushing ahead on a project that hasn't been approved yet by California Coastal Commission officials.

The protest Thursday begins at 11 a.m. at Jefferson and Culver boulevards and will be featured on JaneUnChained News Network via Facebook.

“I just want them to know we’re not backing down," Basler told Patch. “We can’t let these companies bulldoze us like we don’t exist.”

The wetlands are considered state property. Residents have noticed workers digging and drilling inside the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve in recent weeks, just feet away from where endangered birds have been documented, activists from Defend the Ballona Wetlands told Patch.

Activists argue that a proposed project to restore the site is not a real restoration. It's backed by Heal the Bay, SoCalGas Company and Friends of the Ballona Wetlands, but locals are questioning the project and who profits.

According to public records, in 2019, Friends of the Ballona Wetlands received $30,000 from SoCalGas Company. Heal the Bay received $8,000 from the company in 2019.

Defend Ballona Wetlands and the Sierra Club are voicing concerns over the project and sharing their positions. Several people have filed a lawsuit to stop the project and protect the area, a habitat that remains home to hundreds of species of wildlife.

"It's very, very telling that they're calling the police," Velez-Mitchell said. "I am shocked."

"I'd like to call the police and ask SoCalGas to be arrested," activist Marcia Hanscom said.

Environmentalists are demanding to know if the permits for crews to work there are approved and questioning SoCalGas over activity in the wetlands area.

They believe the project—if approved—could create major traffic around LAX, Playa del Rey, Westchester, Marina del Rey, Culver City and Venice.

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