California Oil Spill Stretches From Huntington Beach Pier to Newport Beach
Published Date: 10/4/2021
Source: Bloomberg Quicktake: Now
A massive oil spill in California has caused beaches from Huntington Beach to Newport Beach in Northern Orange County to close. Wetlands were also contaminated after a pipeline broke off the coast. It was one of the largest oil spills in recent Southern California history. About 3,000 barrels - at least 126,000 gallons (572,807 liters) - of oil leaked from the pipeline and washed up on beaches and wetlands in Huntington Beach, a popular spot for Southern California surfers and beach goers. The beach’s ocean and shoreline have been closed indefinitely, the city said in a statement. Crude was no longer leaking from a Southern California pipeline believed to be the source of a massive oil spill that closed miles of popular beaches, according to the head of the company that owns the facility. Divers were still trying to determine where and why the leak occurred, but the flow of oil was stopped late Saturday from the line that runs under the ocean off Huntington Beach, said Amplify Energy CEO Martyn Willsher. Beta Offshore Co., which operates three offshore oil platforms in the area, is responsible for the spill and is working on repairs and cleanup. The oil slick plume stretched 5.8 nautical miles as of Saturday, from Huntington Beach Pier to Newport Beach, Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley said in a statement. The ruptured pipeline connected to an offshore oil platform known as Elly, that is operated by Beta, Foley said on Twitter. Elly processes oil produced by two nearby platforms that are also operated by Beta and began production in the 1980s called Ellen and Eureka, according to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement. Oil production off the California Coast has dwindled in recent years following major spills that have drawn environmental opposition. A pipeline spill on a beach near Santa Barbara in 2015 prompted the shutdown of Exxon Mobil Corp.’s last operating oil platforms off the California coast. Ellen, Eureka and Elly are located in federal waters more than 8 miles from the shoreline. U.S. West Coast oil production in federal waters fell to 13,000 barrels a day in July from a peak of more than 200,000 barrels a day in the mid 1990s, Energy Department data show. Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm Subscribe to our newest channel Quicktake Explained: https://bit.ly/3iERrup Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. To watch complete coverage on Bloomberg Quicktake 24/7, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/qt/live, or watch on Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Fire TV and Android TV on the Bloomberg app. Have a story to tell? Fill out this survey for a chance to have it featured on Bloomberg Quicktake: https://cor.us/surveys/27AF30 Connect with us on… YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Bloomberg Breaking News on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BloombergQuickTakeNews Twitter: https://twitter.com/quicktake Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quicktake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quicktake