Once a scenic nine-mile stretch, now California coast is covered with stinky black goo caused by the pipeline leak.
As cleanup efforts began and federal regulators investigate how the pipeline leaked, the oil spill has already fouled beaches and threatened wildlife.
On Wednesday, workers in protective suits raked and shoveled the materials off the beaches, while boats towed booms into place to corral the two slicks off the Santa Barbara coast where a much larger spill in 1969 is credited with giving rise to the American environmental movement.
According to the estimates provided by officials, up to 105, 000 gallons spilled from an onshore pipe and 21, 000 gallons of that reached the sea.
When the leak was detected Tuesday, the crude was flowing through the pipe at 84, 000 gallons an hour.
It took three hours to shut down the leakage, though the company officials didn’t say how long it leaked before it was discovered.
The pipe’s conditions and the potential regulatory violations are per se by the federal regulators form the Department of Transportation, which oversees oil pipeline safety.
Cost of the cleanup or how long it might take was not been estimated yet.
Meanwhile, popular beach spots forced close due to soiled beaches and pungent stench of petroleum.
According to the department spokeswoman, fishing and shellfish harvesting has been closed for a mile east and west of Refugio beach deploying booms to protect the nesting and foraging habitat of the snowy plover and the least tern, both endangered shore birds.
H/T: Inquirer.net; and photo