Surfrider Foundation Paddleout Builds a Wave of Support to Oppose Oil Drilling off Santa Barbara Coast

More than 100 community members gathered Sunday morning at Refugio State Beach for a paddleout to commemorate the 11th anniversary of the 2015 Refugio oil spill in an organized call to action, hosted by Surfrider Foundation, against renewed offshore drilling efforts by Sable Offshore.

Participants heard heartfelt speeches from UC Santa Barbara students involved in the Environmental Affairs Board and the Surfrider Foundation Student Club, who shared their love for the ocean and their hope that the beauty of the Santa Barbara coast will survive for other generations to experience.

“For we are not alone and we are not done fighting,” said Melody Pederson, UCSB Environmental Affairs Board. “This is about what kind of future we are willing to accept, who will hold power, and what future we are brave enough to imagine.”

Audience members clapped and cheered, holding signs that read “Drilling is Killing” and wearing shirts that said “Don’t Enable Sable.”

World champion surfer Shaun Tomson, the first professional to join Surfrider, shared how he’d settled down in Santa Barbara for the beautiful coastline it offered and how everyone must fight for it.

“I am counting on every single person here,” Tomson said. “Drop a stone, create a ripple, build a wave. Stop oil in our channel!”

The event marked the Plains All American pipeline spill near Refugio State Beach in 2015, which released more than 120,000 gallons of crude oil. The spill killed hundreds of marine mammals and birds, damaged marine ecosystems, and forced the closure of local fisheries.

Surfrider’s legal champion in the fight against Sable is Santa Barbara’s Environmental Defense Center. EDC Executive Director Alex Katz told the crowd that Sable had moved an ongoing lawsuit filed by the EDC from the local state court to federal court on Friday, May 15. He said environmental advocates are continuing to push back against what they describe as unlawful drilling operations and no response from the Trump administration.

“We’re here to commemorate what happened 11 years ago, but this is still happening. Just yesterday we got some photos of a spill near campus,” Katz said. “We are not powerless here. We can keep fighting and keep winning.”

Surfrider’s Environmental Director Zach Plopper talked about a meeting with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in Washington, DC, the agency in charge of offshore drilling.

“The federal administration any day now is going to be dropping a plan to drill across our entire Southern California coastline” Plopper said. “The plan will be based off of three things: where there is existing infrastructure, where there is industry interest, and where there are known oil reserves. And that puts the Santa Barbara Channel in the crosshairs for new rigs and new spills.”

Plopper stated that he wants to send a message, specifically through peaceful action, that the Santa Barbara community will not accept the federal administration to restart oil drilling.

The sunny morning was a sharp contrast to the fears expressed by community members, concerned that if the new federal oil proposals took root in the Santa Barbara Channel, a greater risk was created for future oil spills.

Other speeches came from representatives of the Business Alliance for Protecting the Pacific Coast and Patagonia’s Nick Mucha. He recounted how he treasured the precious coastline for his family, and recognized how valuable the coastal resource is for the community and tourism.

Participants of all ages then paddled about 150 feet offshore to form a peaceful circle to protest the restart of the pipeline as early morning surfers rode the break at the point nearby.