A massive sheet of oil washed up on Sands Beach and Coal Oil Point near UC Santa Barbara last week, lining the tide with black tar.
“I’m not sure of the cause or source, but I did see some snowy plovers with light oiling,” said Armando Aispuro, resource manager at Coal Oil Point Natural Reserve.
Almost as soon as the sheet appeared, it was gone. It was first noticed on Friday afternoon. By this Monday, it had all been sucked back into the ocean.
Staff from Heal the Ocean and UC Santa Barbara were called to the site to try to determine the source of the oil, but by the time they arrived, conditions had changed, and it was impossible to pinpoint.
However, Harry Rabin, field consultant with HTO, said he hadn’t “seen a coating like that in 30 years” in that area. He could not give any conclusive answers, but speculated that the current may have pushed the oil from the area around Platform Holly. Platform Holly is plugged and abandoned, meaning it is no longer producing oil and its wells are sealed. It lies atop an existing oil seep.
It’s possible that there may be a leakage, but they cannot know for sure, Rabin said.
To trace the “oil fingerprint” — the chemical profile used to identify its source and composition — they need fresh samples, he added.
“When the public sees something like this, they should let us know ASAP so we can figure out where it’s coming from,” he said.
As for last week’s oil sheet on Sands Beach, it has likely drifted to Ventura by now, he said.
Heal the Ocean is continuing its Oil Mitigation Study to map and cap the oil wells off Summerland. Rabin said that the study is producing promising results on identifying leaky oil seeps and wells along the coast.
“The future is promising,” he said.
If community members spot large amounts of oil onshore, they can contact Heal the Ocean at (805) 965-7570.
