By Mike McEachen As a frequent visitor to Refugio Beach, I was saddened by the oil that spewed out of the underground pipeline operated by Plains All American Pipeline and fouled our beach and coastline. My family and friends had to cancel our annual Memorial Weekend Refugio Beach campout that we made reservations for six Read More →
While the cleanup of the Refugio oil spill is progressing, albeit slowly, the politics of petroleum extraction have overtaken events on the ground. Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson and Assemblymember Das Williams have called for new rules for oil pipeline safety. In Ventura County, Supervisors Steve Bennett and Linda Parks have questioned the future of oil production Read More →
By Brad Stark and Kieran Osborne The pipeline breakage near Refugio State Beach is not only devastating to our environment and harmful to life on the Central Coast, but it also brings attention to how the oil industry is supported with investment dollars. The public relations battle with fossil fuels has been heating up for Read More →
Just six months ago, Santa Barbara County’s oil and gas industry was sailing on smooth waters. In the November election, broad business support and a flood of outside money helped defeat Measure P, an effort to ban fracking and a wide range of drilling activities countywide. Two companies, Aera Energy and Venoco, were in the Read More →
By Lisa Spiwak California courts have been devastated by deep budget cuts. In California, over 50 courthouses have been shut down and over 250 courtrooms are now closed. Fewer courtrooms and fewer judges mean that it takes longer to get into court and that could be highly relevant to any business seeking legal redress from Read More →
It’s a case of business as usual for Plains All American Pipeline, which owns the pipe that ruptured near Goleta on May 19 and spilled an estimated 101,000 gallons of oil. About 21,000 gallons of oil flowed through a storm culvert under Highway 101 into the ocean, blackening area beaches and creating a 10-square-mile oil Read More →
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