Plains All-American Pipeline is a company led by ex-Flint Resources (Koch Industries) employees for the most part, and it seems their safety standards are right on par with the Kochs. Now those of us living along the California coast will be treated to suffering shore birds and wildlife as a result of their nasty oil spill in Santa Barbara.
KEYT is reporting that the company has a record of other pipeline ruptures.
Plains All-American Pipeline, the company authorities say is responsible for the spill, has a prior spills history. According to the EPA and U.S. Justice Department, Plains All-American Pipeline has had 10 serious crude oil spills in four states that included: Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Kansas.
In 2010, the company reached a settlement with the EPA for a $3.25 million dollars civil penalty for violating the Clean Water Act. The company also agreed to spend $41 million dollars to upgrade more than 10,000 miles of crude oil pipelines.
Between June 2004 and September 2007, more than 273,000 gallons of crude oil were discharged from various pipelines owned by Plains All-American Pipeline, according to the EPA. Some of that oil ended up in rivers, lakes, and oceans.
In January 2015, a coalition of environmental groups sued Plain All-American Pipeline over an oil-by-train terminal near Taft.
They were transporting oil for Exxon-Mobil.
That spill is less than an hour up the coast from where I live. It has taken years to recover from the last oil spill in Santa Barbara. The otter population is just now beginning to thrive and now this.
I'm disgusted.
