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Back to To the Point

To the Point

Santa Barbara Oil Spill

Tuesday's oil spill is being called "a worst nightmare scenario" by officials in Santa Barbara, California. It's giving us images of dead birds, clean-up crews and over nine miles of California Coast covered in 105,000 gallons of thick black oil.

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By Warren Olney • May 21, 2015 • 11m Listen

Tuesday's oil spill is being called "a worst nightmare scenario" by officials in Santa Barbara, California. It's giving us images of dead birds, clean-up crews and over nine miles of California Coast covered in 105,000 gallons of thick black oil. For Southern California, these images also bring echoes of the much larger 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill – which dumped three million gallons of crude oil. That spill spurred the modern environmental movement and motivated some activists to run for higher office.

Photo: Clean-up efforts underway in Santa Barbara after Tuesday's oil spill (Saul Gonzalez)

  • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

    Warren Olney

    former KCRW broadcaster

  • KCRW placeholder

    Sáša Woodruff

    Producer, 'To the Point'

  • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

    Benjamin Gottlieb

    Reporter, Fill-in Host

  • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

    Jenny Hamel

    KCRW

  • KCRW placeholder

    Paul Relis

    environmentalist and author

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    Miyoko Sakashita

    Center for Biological Diversity

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