POOR MAINTENANCE

Cali Pipeline That Leaked Was Corroded

To less than a fraction of an inch.

The pipeline that leaked nearly 101,000 gallons of crude oil on the Central California coastline last month happened in a badly corroded portion that had degraded the pipe wall thickness to just 1/16 of an inch, according to a preliminary government report on Wednesday. The federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration report also said repairs had been made to the pipeline because of corrosion after 2012 in an area near the break. Oil slicks stretched 9 miles in the Pacific ocean along beaches near Santa Barbara after the pipe broke on May 19. The line where the break happened has shut down indefinitely.