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The California oil and gas industry has been a major industry for over a century. Oil production was a minor factor in the 19th century, with kerosene replacing whale oil and lubricants becoming essential to the machine age. Oil became a major California industry in the 20th century with the discovery on new fields around Los Angeles and the San Joaquin Valley, and the dramatic increase in demand for gasoline to fuel automobiles and trucks. In 1900 California pumped 4 million barrels, nearly 5% of the national supply. Then came a series of major discoveries, and the state pumped 100,000,000 barrels in 1914, or 38% of the national supply.〔Harold F. Williamson et al. ''The American Petroleum Industry the Age of Energy 1899-1959'' (1963) p 17〕 In 2012 California produced 197 million barrels of crude oil, out of the total 2,375 million barrels of oil produced in the U.S.〔US Energy Information Administration, (Crude oil production ), accessed 10 Mar 2014〕 California drilling operations and oil production are concentrated primarily in Kern County, San Joaquin Valley and the Los Angeles basin. There is also some offshore oil and gas production in California, but there is now a permanent moratorium on new offshore oil and gas leasing and new offshore platforms in both California and federal waters, although new wells can be drilled from existing platforms. These restrictions were imposed after the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill released oil into the Pacific Ocean.〔1969 Santa Barbara Oil Spill () accessed 12 Jan 2014〕 California produces some gas but imports most of its supply by pipeline. ==Early history== There was plenty of visible oil in California and eastern experts said it would be worth a fortune. The early oil ventures in the 1850s and 1860s were well-funded, but all of them failed. The drillers spent $1 million and their poor quality oil was worth only $10,000.〔Richard Rice et al. ''The Elusive Eden: A New History of California'' (1988) p 317〕 Prospectors after 1848 discovered an increasing number of oil seeps—oil seeping to the surface. In Northern California, there were oil seeps in Humboldt, Colusa, Santa Clara, and San Mateo Counties, and in the asphaltum seeps and bituminous residues in Mendocino, Marin, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, and Santa Cruz Counties. In Southern California, large seeps were found in Ventura, Santa Barbara, Kern, and Los Angeles Counties.〔Early California oil discoveries () accessed 11 Jan 2014〕 Interest in oil and gas seeps was stirred in the 1850s and 1860s, Interest became widespread after the 1859 commercial discovery of oil in Pennsylvania. In 1864, Yale chemistry professor Benjamin Silliman, Jr., a leading expert, examined the oil seepages in Ventura County, and wrote reports that indicated excellent commercial possibilities. The Philadelphia & California Petroleum Company, drilled wells in the Ojai region between 1865 and 1867; one became California’s first "gusher." As early as 1856 a company began working the tar pits at La Brea Ranch, near Los Angeles, distilling some oil. Initially these oil discoveries were done by hand digging a well with pick and shovel or even tunneling (by hand) into a mountain that contained oil. By sloping the tunnels downward the oil ran out the mouth to be collected. Some of this oil was so thick that when pipelines were used they had to be heated in winter to get the oil to flow. Transporting the oil to a market or refinery was nearly always a primary concern. In 1866 the first oil refinery in California was built near McKittrick Tar Pits in Kern County to process kerosene and asphalt. Much of California’s early oil discoveries were in the form of asphalt also known as bitumen a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid form of petroleum. It was found in natural deposits and by processing it became a refined product. Some cities in California started asphalting their streets in the 1870s to keep down dust and mud. In the 20th century the primary use is in road construction, where it is used as the glue or binder mixed with aggregate particles or gravel to create asphalt concrete. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「California oil and gas industry」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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