On January 5, 2007, an oil spill occurred in the Davis Tank Battery on the Greka Energy Zaca Lease. The spill report stated that 20 barrels of crude oil and 50 barrels of produce water were spilled. The spill was the result of the over filling of a produce waste water tank. The tank overflowed for approximately 13 hours before being discovered. The oil and produce water spilled into the secondary containment of the Davis Tank Battery. The containment of the tank battery was comprimised by an unvalved 12" diameter drainage conduit that allowed the spilled material to exit the secondary containment. The oil and produce water exited the secondary containment and migrated through a Santa Barbara Co. Roads Yard, through a winery equipment storage yard and finally into an unnammed tributary to Zaca Creek. The oil initially traveled approximately 1/2 mile down the creek.
The Santa Barbara Co. Fire Department and the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) responded to the spill. The DFG directed Greka to retain a contractor to cleanup the creek. Greka retained Advanced Cleanup Technologies (ACTI). Due to rainy conditions, Greka built to dams to prevent the oil from migrating futher down the creek. On Saturday night, due to flash flood conditions in the creek bed, the dams were compromised and the oil flowed approximately another 3/4 mile downstream.
Greka staff continued to decontaminate the tank farm using a steam cleaner and manual labor. Greka and ACTI staff removed the oil and waste water temporary containment area set up on the effluent end of the drainage conduit that drained the tank farm secondary containment. Waste oil and sediment was placed in the roll-off bins for off-site disposal to Chemical Waste Management, Kettleman Hills, CA. No bins will leave the site until oil quantification by DFG.
Greka worked on the decontamination of the impacted winery equipment.
Greka welded a steel cap on the influent end of the drainage conduit to prevent any future migration of oil out of the secondary containment.
ACTI continued to remove oil from the creek. The oil is removed by manual laborers digging it up and placing it in plastic bags. The bags were then placed on plastic sheets outside of the creek or in the roll-off-bins.
After examining Greka's capabilities to conduct the permit required confined space entry underneath the County Road Maintenance building to remove oil that migrated during the spill, Greka was directed to have their contactor clean under the building. Greka did not meet the requirements pursuant to 29 CFR 1910.146.
The news media from the local newspaper and UNIVISION, the Spanish language station was on-site. The press was managed by DFG.
EPA's Oil Program Inspector was on-site to begin SPCC inspections of the tank batteries.
1. Remove all oil contamination from the creek, tank farm and adjacent areas.
2. Restore the creek to its natural condition.
3. Fill the conduit with concrete to permanently close it.
1. Complete the gross contamination removal from the creek.
2. Complete decontamination of the tank farm and adjacent areas.
OSC Wise issued a NOFI to Greka.
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