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State agency okays controversial restart of oil pipeline which ruptured in Santa Barbara County

Approximately 140,000 gallons of oil spilled in the May, 2015 Plains All-American pipeline rupture near Refugio State Beach.
Approximately 140,000 gallons of oil spilled in the May, 2015 Plains All-American pipeline rupture near Refugio State Beach.

Environmental groups blast action. They had sought a public review. The 2015 rupture of the pipeline caused a 140,000 gallon oil spill on the Gaviota Coast.

Controversial efforts to restart the oil pipeline in Santa Barbara County which ruptured in 2015, causing a major spill have received a major boost. The State Fire Marshal’s Office has given its approval to restart efforts.

The agency has administrative control over pipelines, and can make a decision like this after its own internal review process. But, environmental groups blasted the decision. They want a public environmental review.

The 2015 accident spilled about 140,000 gallons of oil on the Gaviota Coast.

Santa Barbara's Environmental Defense Center contends even with some added safety measures, the old pipeline is another disaster waiting to happen.

Reopening the pipeline would set the stage for reactivating three offshore oil platforms which have been idle since the accident. In a regulatory filing, Sable Offshore Corportation said it hopes to begin testing of the pipeline next month.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.