A suspected oil spill in the Santa Barbara Channel on 2/16 turned out to be a nontoxic mixture of lubricant and soap. With a sheen like that of an oil slick, the mixture was detected near ExxonMobil’s Platform Harmony, offshore from Gaviota, and subsequently investigated by both Coast Guard and Minerals Management Service officials. ExxonMobil said roughly 17 ounces of the fluid-used to clean the platform’s decks-leaked out from Harmony’s drainage system after rains the previous weekend.
