Environmental group threatens to sue US over offshore drilling

Following the oil spill off the coast of Huntington Beach, the Center for Biological Diversity threatened on Friday to sue the federal government if it does not suspend approval of new drilling permits while it reevaluates its effects on the Pacific coast, home to some of the most vulnerable and endangered marine life species.

Also Friday, the U.S. Coast Guard scaled back its estimate of the number of gallons spilled from the pipeline rupture to 25,000 gallons, down from 126,000. The spill is increasingly thought to have been caused by the dragging anchor of a cargo ship.

Nevertheless, Kristin Monsell, Center for Biological Diversity senior attorney and legal director, told federal agencies in a letter Friday that the Huntington Beach spill on Oct. 2 “highlights one of the numerous harmful impacts of offshore oil drilling and why we must immediately transition away from this dirty, dangerous practice for good.”

Monsell said that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and Bureau of Safety Environmental Enforcement approve and monitor drilling activity in federal waters, and thus, she said, are required under Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act to conduct a comprehensive analysis of how the activity could affect the environment.

Tyler Cherry, spokesman for Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland, said Friday that the department had no comment.

Several lawsuits have been filed against Houston based Amplify Energy Co., which owns the pipeline 5 miles offshore. Oil has now reached San Diego County, likely expanding the number of potential plaintiffs. Amplify’s chief executive, Martyn Willsher, has said the rupture is believed to have been caused by an anchor that punctured the pipeline and dragged it at least 105 feet. The ship has not been identified.

Beaches in the City of Laguna Beach reopened Friday. Beachgoers are only allowed on the sand, and are banned from entering the water. Several beaches within Dana Point harbor reopened Thursday.

If the Center for Biological Diversity does proceed with litigation, “it could gain some traction, if the feds have never really analyzed — under the National Environmental Protection Act or the Endangered Species Act — spill-related impacts,” said Stanford environmental law professor Deborah Sivas.

While the estimated amount of oil believed to have spilled has been reduced, “liability still exists,” Sivas added.

Wylie Aitken of Aitken Aitken and Cohen in Santa Ana, agreed that the lowered estimate of oil in the water isn’t going to eliminate the damages already caused. New information is coming out daily, “and I wouldn’t put a ton of thought into what they’re estimating and whether that’s really an accurate estimate,” he said.

Assuming the new number of lost oil is accurate, it could impact the amount of damages and the length of beach closures, Aitken said.

“Keep in mind, it’s a good thing if the damages are less. It’s a good thing for the community and wildlife and every other area adversely affected,” Aitken said.