SAN DIEGO— Southern California community members will rally Thursday before a California Coastal Commission meeting to support the agency for issuing a violation notice to Sable Offshore Corp. for conducting unpermitted work on a pipeline that caused one of the worst oil spills in California history.

Attendees will also urge the commission to ensure that its consideration of the restart of three offshore oil platforms, pipelines and other infrastructure includes public participation, careful commission oversight and legal compliance.

What: Rally and press conference opposing the restart of the Santa Ynez Unit oil and gas operations, including the pipeline that ruptured in 2015 at Refugio Beach, and urging the Coastal Commission to take swift action to protect the coast.

Attendees will gather for a photo with a “Fight Offshore Drilling” banner, an inflatable whale and homemade signs.

When: Rally and speakers at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 10. The commission meeting starts at 9:00 a.m.

Where: Catamaran Hotel, 3999 Mission Blvd., San Diego, CA 92109. Rally will be held on the beach behind the hotel on Mission Bay. The commission meeting is at the hotel.

Who: Speakers from the Center for Biological Diversity will include Brady Bradshaw, senior oceans campaigner, and Kristen Monsell, oceans legal director.

Background
Sable Offshore Corp., a Texas oil company, is telling investors it plans to restart oil and gas drilling from the Santa Ynez Unit by the end of 2024. However, the company still needs a number of agency approvals to resume operations, which have been shut down since a heavily corroded pipeline ruptured and caused the catastrophic 2015 Refugio oil spill.

The Refugio spill devastated 150 miles of the California coast, polluting thousands of acres of shoreline and subtidal habitat, killing hundreds of marine mammals and birds and shutting down fisheries. It cost hundreds of millions of dollars to clean up, restore and compensate for and resulted in a felony conviction for the pipeline’s former owner.

The commission will soon decide what additional permit processes and other oversight must occur before any Santa Ynez Unit restart decision is made.