i'm john seigenthaler, see you back here tomorrow. ali velshi "on target", is next. next. i'm david shuster in for ali velshi, on target, the invisible threat. a natural gas leak lead to a nationality disaster such as the oil spill, and so far there's no way to stop it. a water crisis in flint michigan sparked outrage and focused attention on ignoring ageing infrastructure. in flint's case it was old lead pipes allowing corrosive water

from the flint river to leach led into the city's drinking water. led can be harmful to children, produce learning disabilities and behaviour problems. there's a lot of question about who was at fault. public officials failed to treat the pipes and water possibly. tests turned up high levels of led in the blood of children. tonight we'll take a closer look at a public safety problem, 2,000 mails away from plint in san fernando valley. the source is a gas leak. starting three months ago in a damaged storage well in a canyon 25 miles north-west of los angeles. methane gas is escaping the well and blowing into the air, air breathed by the residents and other communities. dozens are sick, thousands of families forced to leave their

home. the company that owns the world and its parent company - questions have been raised. the damaged well had no safety shut off valve. the company says the valve is not required by law. residents want the facility in the canyon, which supplies gas to 22 million customers shut down. state regulators ordered the gas to close only the damaged well. establish a system and conduct an independent house study. this is the latest frustration for residents complaining that state officials took too long to react to a threat first reported over three months ago on october 23rd, 2015. they point out that it took until january 6th of this year for jerry brown to call a state of emergency. it is also disrupting lives. >> jennifer london has the story. >> reporter: this couple were

supposed to sign loan documents to buy the home of their dreams in porta ranch california. instead, they are backing and moving 30 years ago. >> it's difficult when the three-year-old says mummy i want to go home. it's hard. >> the family joins 12,000 other people forced to flee their homes to escape methane gas that has been leaking into the air since october. >> our 13-year-old daughter has been sick as well. >> cameras capture the plume. don't be fooled by what you can't see with the naked eye. enough gas has been leaking from the storage facility to fill the empire state building every day. if you get close enough to the leak, you can hear it. >> it sounds like a hell of a lot of gas escaping. >> with no shut off valve the

only way to dole with it is to drill a relief mill. a show and tell was taken to look at the progress the company was making. it showed something else. the people that put the well down did not intend that that casing would be used to inject natural gas or withdraw it. they were trying to extract oil in the 1950s. now, in 2015 or 2016. socal gas relies on that old pipe. does not do the ultrasonic testing or the pressure testing that would have told them there were anomalies in the pipe. didn't replace the sub-surface valve and the regulators give their blessing. what could go wrong? >> are you saying the regulators have been negligent. >> they have accepted a low

standard of safety, and sacal matched the standard. yes, they've been megement. >> soc ark l said there was no basis for claims of negligence. we operate with safety, and we see to all of the regulations, and we are in total compliance. >> if you say that the gas company is in compliance, it begs the question of are the regulations out of date. >> as we move forward, we will be as we told the governor and all the various agencies working closely to set up a framework on where do we go from here. >> what is clear, communities have been displaced. two schools closed and local brzs are struggling because customers moved away. >> obviously there's plenty of blame to go around from the largest gas leak history. >> what do you plan to do? >> right now, we are trying to push socal and the agencies to

get relief from people and businesses from the small business administration. there's a long list. but it has got to end with having regulations of natural gas storage facilities. >> reporter: al jazeera wanted to speak with the state regulatory agency in charge of oil and gas, but we were told they would not participate in an on-camera interview. instead we received an email saying in part:. >> the statement said the agency is issuing emergency regulations they are pending review and will not take effect until february. >> i don't trust anything they

say. >> i like to get that in writing. >> with no immediate relief in site. residents say they are not only sick, they are sired of waiting and are taking calls to shutter the storage facility all the way to washington. [ chanting ] jennifer london joins us from los angeles. regulators met them on saturday and issued new restrictions, what was decided. what impact do the restrictions have. >> state regulators ordered a number of restrictions, saying once the leak is stopped. the well will have to be shut down. it may sound like a victory,

there are 114 other wells, and residents, lawmakers and environmental groups say they will not be happy until all the wells, the entire facility is shut down. they have safety concerns surrounding the other 114 wells. >> you mentioned drilling a relief well to stop the leek, why is that taking so long. >> that is the question everyone is asking. why is it taking months to stop the leak. when i'm asked the gat company, they described it as a complicated process, saying they are drilling the relief well 1500 feet away from the ruptured well, and then 8500 feet into the ground. from there they drill dying ag knolly to intercept the well it's a precise operation, complicated. once they intercept the well. that's when they'll pump liquid,

mud, other materials to stop the leak. that is one of the reasons why it's taking so long. >> a costly process. speaking of costs. socal is spending time and money moving the community out. they claim there's no long-term damage or danger. does this mean once the gas is shut off. the residents can move back? >> it depends on the resident's specific circumstances. a family or individual that moved into a hotel to get release. that will be easier for them to move into their home when they feel it's safe. a lot of families signed short-term leases, and some long-term. so when they are told that it's safe to move in, or when the families decide to move in, they'll have to work out those details. >> sfarls the value of real

estate in the area, what is going on with that. >> we heard a lot of anecdotal stories about how the prices are plummeting in the area. banks are no longer lending in the area. that's the reason the family in our piece fell out of escrow. they could no longer get a loan. we learnt that one local realtor filed a complaint in los angeles court seeking class-action status. because banks are lending it has destroyed his business. you have to wonder about the long-term desirability of that area. it is making national news. everyone knows it's one of the largest natural gas storage facilities, upwind, a mile away from 30,000 residents and homes, people are wondering what it will do to their real estate in the long term. jennifer london - terrific reporting. thank you. >> next up - we'll talk to one.

lawmakers who promised to put a stop to disasters like this. the question is - what took so long.

we've been talking about the porta ranch gas leak that has been spewing methane in the air for three months. california senator introduced legislation that she says will make sure an accident like this will never happen again. >> first of all, the proposed legislation to address the porta ranch gas leak. how are you sure of that? >> well, i suppose no one is completely sure between

earthquakes "and other uncertainties. but what we are trying to do is minimise the risks. >> how do we do that. through a variety of strategies. we know an injection well is leaking. eventually it will be stopped. the well will be killed. but what i need to do is make sure about 20 other wells are also dated back to the 1950s. whose integrity is questionable. butly an independent reviewer. if they can't operate, we are not going to. there are 115 wells at this

location. one well is leaking. there are about 20 other wells of that same era. >> i want to ask you a question about that in a second. what is in the legislation to help the people that have gotten sick or seen the home values plummet? >> what this would do is provide assurances to move back into the home, the normal life. regarding long-term health impacts. the legislation is requiring not only looking at the short-term impacts, the matters used in methane, so we know when it's leaking we can smell and stop it. we are looking at long-term impacts. we are requiring a thorough review and monitor people subjected not to a long-time occurs, but three months.

>> it's great it will force the health to be monitored. it's nothing for those that are sick. other are than monitoring and figuring it out at a later date. >> what they have been doing, of course, most people have been under medical care. we had a lot of scientists look at short-term impacts - like knows bleeds, nauseous, unacceptable. i feel sorry for the families, especially with young children that might have susceptibility to the smell. those in and of itself, short-term impacts. it's nothing to suggest long turn problems. what we are trying to do is look at the long-term impacts. there hasn't been a preponderance. recording with what is acceptable or unacceptable.

a number of people suggest that since this started spewing air. it took until january 11th. >> it took several weeks to figure out they couldn't stop the leak. another legislation is a requirement that there be safety valves in place within a certain distance from homes. there were none in place at the time. it's lessons learnt. closing down all the wells will not stop the leak. that is - putting in a release well. it's complicated. it's an expert on the details. >> that is a perfectly fair point. given that, as you pointed out 48 or 47 storage wells were

drilled in 1953 or earlier, why didn't lawmakers address this issue before something like this happened. >> we are learning all over the state about deferred maintenance, whether it's l.a.'s archaic and old water pipelines that failed, or some pipelines and a gas line up in the san francisco gay area. we are seeing all over the country a lack of investment by local entities, cities and counties, for keeping up and maintaining infrastructure as they age overtime. >> with all due respect, a number of lawmakers knew about the lack of infrastructure spending. why has it taken you and others so long to get a handle on this? >> we continue to - through investigative hearings bring in the division of oil and gas, and the p u.c., carefully providing

that oversight. it's incumbent on all of us. legislators and local officials, the core and his key agency people. it's a collective responsibility. long term, we need to look at do we put homes and schools adjacent to producing oil and gas. >> that's a great question. i hope that you'll be asking. here is a question. that is it's been wide by reporting that socal's parent company spent $2.5 million on lobbying financial campaigns in california. did that have an impact forcing members of your own party to look the other way at infrastructure problems. >> you know, it's been interesting. on this issue, bipartisan support. i don't know of any legislature that is not supporting the

package. what is happening is unacceptable. i had good cooperation with other legislators, i, myself, don't have any and never had ties to sa call gas or sempora. i try to monitor carefully and shine a light on operations. we went back into session. i spent two months with the home owners on the field. this is in my district now after oversight, attendanteding meetings and -- attending meetings and hearings, to introduce legislation, because what i'm worried about is when this one leak is stopped, the media and everyone else will not pay attention. i will be, and that's why i introduced legislation. >> good for you, representing the 27th district from california. thank you for joining us. we appreciate it. >> coming up, good news for

american businesses that want to cash in on cuba. we'll tell you about the latest administration creating countries for congress by chipping away at the u.s. trade embargo. >> it's going to be about getting people out to the caucus, which is not an easy thing to do. >> comprehensive coverage that's... >> the focus will be on south carolina tonight.

business between cuba and the united states got a big boost. the obama on tuesday announced that cuba will no longer have to

pay cash up front when buying exports. cash-strapped cuba can finance its purchases from american companies. the new policy does not apply to food, agriculture and medicine, but creates the possibility of a flood of sales to cuba and other sectors like construction and telecommunications. a u.s. embargo dating back to 1960 restricts trade with cuba, these days there are exceptions. david ariosto travelled for this report. >> reporter: december 17, 2014, president obama dropped a bombshell. >> today the united states of america is changing its relationship with the people of cuba. >> reporter: the u.s. and cuba would seek to normalize relations. for many it was a shock, yet the surprise gave way to the prospect of opportunity, a market of 11 million people, with half a century of pent-up

demand for u.s. goods and services. >> it's no xajlation since september 17th that my phone at not stopped from a company that is interested, someone that wants to understand the limitations. >> a u.s. bem barringo dating back to 1960 today still prevent most american trade and commerce with cuba. >> there are exceptions. somebody once said it has more holes. you have to know where the holes are. food and medicine have been exceptions. the new parliament ushered in new communications. including communications, cellphones, insurance, microfinance. this largely untapped market, 90 miles off the coast may be

tempting. it may be what you expect. especially when you dig deeper. the cuban market may seem like a market with american businesses. you have to consider the buying power of cubans, the average salary is $20 a month. they take that and buy foods and vegetables. this is a market where the price is lower. they take the salary and this. this is a ration card that basically itemises out how many beans and rice for the month, and the proportions are small. when you take both of those, in official terms, the buying power is not great. >> translation: in general this market is a projected of the military. it assists and helps cubans to buy products. >> though some residents boost the buying power, and

remittances, there are other roadblocks to investment, name the question of infrastructure, keeping pace with the new demands. >> cuba needs to redo its power grid, they need to build power plants. some of the road network needs to be done. lastly if you want to do business in cuba, better prepared to do business with the government the state controls production, manufacturing and distribution centers to large agricultural products. that means investigating requires a government go between of 250 foreign companies, some complained that that reduces efficiency, makes negotiations difficult, and raises the risk of having assets seized. insiders caution that for all the opportunity, the new relationship with washington and the changes that are happening on the island. this is still castro's cuba.

>> david ariosto joins us from cuba. there is is the view from havana. what are the implications for businesses. >> if you are in agriculture and insurance et cetera, nothing changes. what president obama has been doing is basically every couple of months we'll get a dribble about what is taking place, and he's taking what he can by executive order and lifting restrictions, if you are, let's say, a john deere, a microsoft that wants to open a showroom, or coca-cola is operating in cuba, so is verizon. all this makes the process of doing business easier. when you have to put cash up front to a cuban government that is cash strapped. it restricts the business you can do. so the financing opens the door for a flood of sales and

pressures the united states, in terms of the chamber of commerce, and u.s. businesses pushing for a list, and the cubans, and said, you know, u.s. embargo is the sole reason for the economic woes in cuba, and these changes start to underline that argument. it pressure for the castro argument. >> this is the way business is normally done. does it make it a logical step for president obama to choose to do this now? >> it does. when you look at what obama is doing at this point. he's legacy shopping. we saw what happened with the iran deal. the historic reproachment that we come across here. the white house made it clear he's eyeing a drip. there's pressure on u.s. lawmakers and the government increasing the chance of that happening. late in 2016, if this is the year that the president makes a trip to cuba, we haven't seen that since the 1920s. >> i have a feeling you'll be in

havana, reporting along the way. thank you, appreciate it. that is our show for today. i'm david shuster in for ali velshi. thanks for joining us. have a great night everybody.