Did you know working oil rigs dot our city? If you never noticed them, you’re not alone. The machinery’s disguised as flowery sculptures and plain office buildings — but the rigs really are everywhere, reveals a 10-minute video called Oil of L.A.
Watch the video above to see the markings of the oil industry right next to the Beverly Hills High School campus, below The Farmers’ Market at Fairfax and 3rd, by the Beverly Center, and more. Oil of L.A. also provides some background on the oil industry in L.A. and features an interview with a representative from Long Beach energy company Signal Hill Petroleum.
And if you still want to see more after the video, the State of California Department of Conservation has a small and curious collection of photographs depicting oil and gas drilling in the L.A.-area.
Oil of L.A.‘s the first in a series by the online TV network VBS.tv called Uneven Terrain, “devoted to urban exploration and uncovering the hidden, underground and forgotten corners of the world’s leading metropolises”
holy. crap. no wayz. this is an awesome vid.
Comment by cambria — November 19, 2009 @ 12:00 pm
Nice work, love the video! I think our yard is big enough for a drill….let me start diggin….. :P
Comment by Evonne — November 19, 2009 @ 12:15 pm
Amazing! Are there hidden oil fields in other cities? I’ve never heard of that before.
Comment by Kirsten@Nexyoo — November 19, 2009 @ 2:01 pm
There are some not so hidden ones on La Cienaga in Culver City. It’s crazy to think that we’re drilling in oil in LA…ahh!
Comment by Tracy Hepler — November 20, 2009 @ 9:17 am
I think that is why Janice Hahn wanted to tax oil dwells in the city a couple of years ago, I haven’t heard much since.
Comment by Community — November 23, 2009 @ 9:38 am
Well the feedback I’ve gotten on this post (including those emailed / on Facebook / etc.) have been v. polarized — One group’s like most of the people here, who’re as shocked as I was! Others are like, yeah I’ve known that for years.
Anyway, I’m glad more of us know about this now. I thought the video did a pretty good job of putting it all together — especially how the oil rigs are so well hidden that even longtime Angelenos like us have no idea they’re there.
Comment by Siel — November 24, 2009 @ 5:30 pm