ICYMI: In Los Angeles Times Op-Ed, Sen. Schiff Raises Alarm on Attempts to Restart Pipeline Responsible for 2015 Oil Spill

"…If Donald Trump and his big oil allies get their way, the exact same pipelines that caused that Refugio spill will be reopened - and we will take a major step backward in the fight to keep our coasts clean."

Read the full article here.

Washington, D.C. - In case you missed it, U.S. Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) published an op-ed with the Los Angeles Times strongly opposing Sable Offshore Corporation's attempts to restart oil drilling operations using the same pipelines that caused the Refugio State Beach oil spill of 2015.

Schiff highlighted how allowing Sable - a company that has flagrantly disobeyed directives from California agencies - to move forward would "clear the way for the administration to open California's entire offshore continental shelf to oil drilling, as his administration desires."

Earlier this year, Schiff and Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.-24) wrote to Governor Gavin Newsom raising concerns about the potential restart of offshore oil drilling operations along California's Gaviota Coast by Sable Offshore Corp.

Key Excerpts:

On the Trump administration's involvement in oil drilling operations:

Just a few weeks ago, the Trump administration heralded its "significant achievement" of Sable announcing - perversely, on the anniversary of the 2015 Refugio spill - that it is restarting the pipelines and offshore oil extraction at the connected offshore platforms. A celebration that, according to the California State Lands Commission and the California Coastal Commission, wasn't just premature but also in violation of state agency directives since the company still doesn't have all the permits it needs to resume. That the administration would promote a "restart" that is in direct conflict with our state agencies is either willful ignorance of ongoing and unsettled litigation or a more chilling suggestion that they have no interest in abiding by a state's rules when it comes to protecting our coastline.

On calling for all Californians to stand up to protect the environment:

Californians, only a handful of generations ago, stood together in the wake of the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill and created Earth Day to reflect on the importance of protecting the only planet we have. We need to mobilize again. Big Oil and Donald Trump are counting on you to stay on the sidelines. Allowing Sable to move forward would clear the way for the administration to open California's entire offshore continental shelf to oil drilling, as his administration desires.

In the face of that danger, we must alert the public to the profound risks and generate a call to action - raising the issue publicly, repeatedly, visibly, vociferously, at the local, state and federal level, demanding our elected representatives do better, do something, before calamity strikes again. We need to speak out with the same loud collective voice that created Earth Day (and later the Environmental Protection Agency) in order to keep our beaches, our coastal economies, our marine life, and our state safe from another disaster.

On Trump singling out blue states like California:

As is true with much of what comes from the Trump administration, it is hard not to see this act (and its timing) as another example of petty vengeance and greed that benefits corporations and comes at the cost of local communities and working families. Donald Trump singles out states like California for their lack of perceived political support and then weaponizes the powers of the executive to cut critical infrastructure investments, open politicized investigations, illegally cancel grants for safety and prevention programs as basic as earthquake retrofits, and push projects like Sable's that could bring real harm to Californians if they succeed.

Read the full article below:

Los Angeles Times: Trump's grudge against California could lead to the next major oil spill

By U.S. Senator Adam Schiff

For a coastal California community, an oil spill has devastating and long-lasting consequences. These catastrophes kill off tourism and local economies, destroy marine life, and disrupt fisheries and critical scientific research, costing millions in both cleanup costs and lost revenue. Many Californians will remember the Refugio State Beach oil spill of 2015 as one of the most recent and destructive examples of this devastation in their lifetime. But if Donald Trump and his big oil allies get their way, the exact same pipelines that caused that Refugio spill will be reopened - and we will take a major step backward in the fight to keep our coasts clean.

Right now, a new Texas oil company named Sable Offshore Corp. is attempting to restart the pipelines that have been dormant for the decade since the Refugio spill, but now with another decade's worth of corrosion. Don't be fooled - this is not an upstart company looking to chart a different path than the pipeline's last owner, Exxon Mobil. After state and local officials, community leaders and environmental activists fought to stop Exxon Mobil from taking these pipelines back online, Exxon conveniently stepped in to loan Sable the $623 million it would need to purchase the pipelines and other oil production infrastructure.

But Exxon is not Sable's only friend in a high place.

Just a few weeks ago, the Trump administration heralded its "significant achievement" of Sable announcing - perversely, on the anniversary of the 2015 Refugio spill - that it is restarting the pipelines and offshore oil extraction at the connected offshore platforms. A celebration that, according to the California State Lands Commission and the California Coastal Commission, wasn't just premature but also in violation of state agency directives since the company still doesn't have all the permits it needs to resume. That the administration would promote a "restart" that is in direct conflict with our state agencies is either willful ignorance of ongoing and unsettled litigation or a more chilling suggestion that they have no interest in abiding by a state's rules when it comes to protecting our coastline.

As is true with much of what comes from the Trump administration, it is hard not to see this act (and its timing) as another example of petty vengeance and greed that benefits corporations and comes at the cost of local communities and working families. Donald Trump singles out states like California for their lack of perceived political support and then weaponizes the powers of the executive to cut critical infrastructure investments, open politicized investigations, illegally cancel grants for safety and prevention programs as basic as earthquake retrofits, and push projects like Sable's that could bring real harm to Californians if they succeed.

In 2015, the Refugio spill reached as far south as southern Los Angeles County and cost hundreds of millions of dollars in both environmental cleanup costs and lost revenue for our local businesses. In addition to the profound injury to marine life, the damage of the spill stole 140,000 recreation days from California beachgoers. Local fishermen alone lost a fortune and Plains All American, the pipeline's previous owner, was forced to pay them $184 million to settle their losses.

Another spill could be far worse. Some estimates project a future spill from the corroded pipeline could be double the size of the 2015 spill, even with the installation of improved safety valves. And all of this could happen under a president who has shown that even the worst of natural disasters - which don't discriminate between political ideologies - are not enough of a reason to help a community in crisis.

The opposition to restarting the Refugio pipelines is coalescing from all sides. Local businesses whose success comes from our beautiful coastline are raising the alarm. City councils, tribal groups and community organizations are denouncing this dangerous threat to our shores. My colleague from Santa Barbara, Congressman Salud Carbajal, and I are working to hold the Trump administration accountable for its championing of this disaster-in-waiting. Local voices like those on the Coastal Commission, at the Environmental Defense Center and among activists like the indefatigable Julia Louis-Dreyfus, have worked to put this pipeline on the national stage. And Santa Barbara's state senator, the newly minted President Pro Tempore Monique Limón, as well as Assemblymember Gregg Hart and others in Sacramento, are leading the charge to strengthen the safety requirements and testing regimes for these pipelines, and give Californians a clear opportunity to be heard.

But to succeed, this effort needs a critical ingredient: you.

Californians, only a handful of generations ago, stood together in the wake of the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill and created Earth Day to reflect on the importance of protecting the only planet we have. We need to mobilize again. Big Oil and Donald Trump are counting on you to stay on the sidelines. Allowing Sable to move forward would clear the way for the administration to open California's entire offshore continental shelf to oil drilling, as his administration desires. In the face of that danger, we must alert the public to the profound risks and generate a call to action - raising the issue publicly, repeatedly, visibly, vociferously, at the local, state and federal level, demanding our elected representatives do better, do something, before calamity strikes again. We need to speak out with the same loud collective voice that created Earth Day (and later the Environmental Protection Agency) in order to keep our beaches, our coastal economies, our marine life, and our state safe from another disaster.

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