The Huntington Beach oil spill was the second large-scale off shore oil leak in California’s history. The drilling company, Noble Corporation, has been fined $1.5 million for violating state environmental rules and regulations that were put into effect after a previous similar incident in Santa Barbara County.
The “where is huntington beach” is a new oil sheen that has been discovered off the Huntington Beach coastline. The discovery was made by the Pacific Trash Vortex Project, and it’s believed to be from an oil tanker that capsized in 2014.
HUNTINGTON BEACH, California (CBSLA) — On Wednesday, a second oil sheen was detected off the shore of Huntington Beach, roughly a week after the first was reported in the same region.
After an oil sheen, an oil sheen may be seen off the shore of Bolsa Chica State Beach in Huntington Beach, California. 16th of December, 2021. (Twitter/Huntington Beach Police Department)
According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of Spill Prevention and Response, the sheen was discovered roughly a mile offshore from Bolsa Chica State Beach.
Despite precautions, some tarballs were discovered on the beach at Huntington Beach on Thursday afternoon, according to authorities.
Furthermore, according to a statement from the City of Long Beach, “the amount of the sheen is presently uncertain, but, given its current northern course, the San Gabriel River, Long Beach coastline, and Port of Long Beach may be affected as early as tomorrow morning, December 24.”
The bad weather on Thursday will hamper containment operations and make it easier for the oil sheen to move, they said.
The sheen’s origin was unclear.
As a precaution, “protection techniques” were put in place overnight at “important environmental locations” such Talbert Marsh, Bolsa Chica wetlands, Newport Slough, and the Santa Ana River, according to OSPR.
According to an OSPR Twitter tweet, “an overflight is planned for today (Thursday) morning.” “As part of the inquiry, samples were gathered yesterday, and the source has yet to be established.”
An oil spill the size of a football field was detected approximately two miles off the coast of Bolsa Chica State Beach on Dec. 15. Sheen did not seem to be the consequence of a pipeline breach, according to investigators. It’s also unclear whether it was related to a storm that hit the area the day before.
On Oct. 2, a pipeline operated by Amplify Energy ruptured in federal waters near the Elly oil-rig platform, some 4 1/2 miles off the coast of Huntington Beach. Amplify’s offshore drilling rigs are connected to a pump station in Long Beach via a roughly 18-mile conduit. A total of 25,000 gallons of crude oil were spilled into the sea.
Federal officials verified that a piece of Amplify’s pipeline had been ruptured and had moved more than 100 feet over the ocean bottom, implying that the leak was triggered by a ship’s anchor.
Three corporations were charged federally in connection with the October oil leak on Dec. 15, the same day the initial oil slick was noticed.
UPDATE: Agencies are continuing to look into a sheen off the coast of Bolsa Chica State Beach. As of this morning, there have been no coastline effects. Protective methods were implemented overnight at vulnerable environmental areas as a preventative precaution.
— December 23, 2021, CDFW Spill Prevention & Response (@CalSpillWatch)
(CBS Broadcasting Inc., Copyright 2021, All Rights Reserved.) This article was written with the help of City News Service.)
