Oil spreads along California coast after pipeline rupture
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In 1969, one of the nation’s largest oil spills occurred off the coast of Santa Barbara and helped galvanize the modern environmental movement. Today, an oil spill from a ruptured pipeline spewed approximately 21,000 gallons of oil for four miles along the scenic and ecologically sensitive Santa Barbara coastline; although the size and volume will likely change.
Friends of the Earth Climate Campaigner Marissa Knodel issued the following response:
This spill shows, yet again, that safe and responsible oil and gas drilling are myths. In addition to the damage caused by similar oil disasters, continual oil and gas development puts us further down the path toward climate catastrophe. Despite these terrible impacts, the Obama administration wants to open up new areas for drilling, which presents a dangerous and unjust risk to the homes and livelihoods of coastal communities, and to wildlife. Like the 1969 oil spill, let today’s oil disaster be the catalyst for a new movement to keep fossil fuels in the ground.
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Expert contact: Marissa Knodel, (202) 222-0729, [email protected]
Communications contact: Kate Colwell, (202) 222-0744, [email protected]