Oil Pipeline Automatic Shut Off Valves Could Fail Because of Human Error

An oil leak that could have been avoided, off the Northern Santa Barbara County coastline in September of 1997, reminds some long time environmentalists about automatic shut off valves, and their flaws.

The break back then was off shore from Platform Irene in a 20-inch line between the rig and the shore.

It’s relevant today, because some have said all the environmental and economic fall out from the Plains All American Pipeline rupture last month near Refugio State Beach could have been averted if that line had an automatic shut down system when there is a problem. The line did not have that system and was manually monitored offsite.

The results has been calculated in the multi-millions of dollars, along with dead mammals and shore birds.
In 1997, Platform Irene did have an automatic shutdown system, and there was still a 10-20,000 gallon spill.

Linda Krop an attorney with the Environmental Defense Center in Santa Barbara was on the scene.

“So the pipeline shut down and an operator noticed the pipeline shut down, and over rode it, and said ‘oh my gosh gotta get the pipeline going’ and that resulted in the spill” Before long there was oil in the water and on the beach on the south end of Vandenberg Air Force base. It did not get to the Jalama Beach recreational site, but county officials were very concerned about that in a hearing right after the pipeline break.

” I did go out to that spill and it was comparable to this one (Refugio),” said Krop.

She said the area impacted by the Platform Irene spill was not open to the public, but it had tarballs, and dead animals that resulted in a large scale response, teams of clean up crews, and animal rescue experts.

Back then the county was not given a voice in that response, and Krop said it got worse near the Santa Ynez River mouth, before it was better.

“Because the spill that time started off shore and came on shore, the opposite of this one the agency said don’t worry the spill won’t travel that far. Well it did. And it caused significant damage. This time the county has been more involved,” said Krop who fought to protect the shoreline and waterways after the pipeline Irene break.

She testified before several public meetings and brought out issues to county officials that helped to reshape policies.

She says pipelines are safer than tankers and trucks, but operator error can still exist and there is no perfect system to move oil.