A ruptured Californian oil pipeline that caused a crude spill of 2,400 barrels into the Gaviota coast in Santa Barbara and into the Pacific Ocean has exceeded $60 million in cleanup costs.
Plains All American Pipeline spokeswoman Meredith Mathews said that restoring the area costs $3 million a day, excluding the financial damage claims from people or businesses affected by the spill, The Los Angeles Times reported.
More than 1,000 workers, skimming boats, ecological monitors and other resources were deployed in the area to do the cleaning.
The pipeline rupture caused the closure of two popular beaches while fishing and shellfish harvesting was banned due to the polluted waters, Reuters reported.
About 75 percent of the 96.5 miles (155 km) of shoreline surveyed was already cleaned up, officials say.
The Oiled Wildlife Care Network at UC Davis noted that 158 dead birds, 85 dead marine mammals including 64 dead California sea lions were recovered from the spill area.
