California’s distaste for offshore drilling dates back to the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill. Here's a recap of how the state has led the charge against the practice ever since:
shocked the public and galvanized the modern environmental movement.
Thousands of birds, drenched in oil, struggled to take flight. Sea otters flailed in the water. Day after day, dead dolphins and other marine life washed in with the tide. The water itself turned so thick and heavy with oil that even the waves were silent as they crashed to shore. California has been a leader in restricting offshore oil drilling since that disaster — a seminal moment in the nation’s environmental history. Some have called the Santa Barbara spill “the environmental shot heard round the world.”Fifty years ago this week, a massive oil spill off the coast of Santa Barbara spewed an estimated 3 million gallons of crude oil into the ocean, creating an oil slick 35 miles long along California’s coast and killing thousands of birds, fish and sea mammals.
When the Reagan administration in the 1980s sought to open much of the nation’s outer continental shelves, 24 California cities and counties passed local laws banning new infrastructure that would support offshore drilling. Seventeen were sued by oil companies, but the local ordinances all still exist in some form.
In 1994, the state Legislature passed the California Coastal Sanctuary Act, which prohibits new leasing in state waters.
Ireland Latest News, Ireland Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
'Catastrophic' California oil spill kills fish, damages wetlandsA large oil spill off the southern California coast left fish dead, birds mired in petroleum and wetlands contaminated, in what local officials called an environmental catastrophe.
Read more »
Major oil spill reaches California coastLocal officials on Sunday warned of 'significant ecological impacts,' after thousands of gallons of oil leaked from an offshore oil rig and washed up on Southern California beaches. The latest: As of Sunday evening, 1,218 gallons of 'oily water mixture' have been recovered from the spill area, according to a Coast Guard press release.Get market news worthy of your time with Axios Markets. Subscribe for free.Several beaches along the California coast have been closed, per the release.Although whe
Read more »
Orange County beaches closed after oil spill off California coast destroys wildlife habitatPortions of popular beaches across a swath of Southern California have been closed after a pipeline breach sent thousands of gallons of oil into the Pacific Ocean and dead wildlife began washing ashore.
Read more »
Dead Birds and Fish Are Washing Up on California Coast After Major Oil SpillBeaches in the area were closed as workers rushed to try to mitigate the environmental impact of the spill.
Read more »
Major oil spill closes California's Huntington Beach; Airshow canceledOil slicks are seen on the water off the coast of Huntington Beach, California, in the wake of a major oil spill that has canceled several activities and is affecting wildlife.
Read more »