Cleanup Efforts Underway In Oklahoma After 19,000-Gallon Oil Spill [Video]

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — Crews from a Houston-based pipeline company are cleaning up in the aftermath of a 19,000-gallon oil spill northwest of Oklahoma City, according to reports.

The rupture of a Plains All American Pipeline has affected some 70 acres of farmland and reached a small creek, according to the Associated Press. The site of the spill is in the rural town of Loyal, about 60 miles northwest of Oklahoma City. The 450-barrel spill actually was reported Friday, but it's unclear when it started, the AP noted.

Oklahoma Corporation Commission spokesman Matt Skinner attested to the affected landscape, saying the oil reached the small creek at one point in the spill, according to AP. But he added the leak was contained before it flowed into a second creek flowing into the Cimarron River about 16 miles away.

The state's Department of Environmental Quality agency also dispatched a specialist to the site, who confirmed there was no contamination in the second creek, agency spokeswoman Erin Hatfield told media outlets.

Plains All American officials subsequently issued a statement saying the oil was contained to farmland and a portion of an unpaved country road. Officials added an investigation into what caused the leak is ongoing, but it's not believed pipeline corrosion played a part.

"We are following our emergency response plan, and our staff is working with regulators and affected landowners," officials said. "Our current priorities are to ensure the safety of all involved and limit the environmental impact of the release," company officials said in the statement.

The leak in Oklahoma isn't the first time Plains All American Pipeline has experienced line ruptures, KFOR reported. Citing data from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Plains had more than 25 pipeline incidents in the state of Oklahoma, dating back as far as 2006, the station reported. Of those, 14 were attributable to corrosion with six coming from material, welding or equipment failures.

Plains has also been subject to a federal lawsuit for violating the Clean Water Act, the news station reported. The Environmental Protection Agency said more than 270,000 gallons of crude oil leaked from Plains pipelines and one tank into navigable waterways or nearby waters between June 2004 and September 2007, the news station reported.

Three years later, Plains All American Pipeline officials agreed to pay $3.25 million in penalties in connection to the 10 spills in Texas, Louisiana, Kansas and Oklahoma, according to the report. The agreement also required the company to spend $41 million to upgrade more than 10,400 miles of U.S.-operated pipelines; replacing or installing corrosion control equipment, pipeline inspections; assess newly acquired pipelines; improve leak detection and provide employee training, KFOR reported.

Plains All American Pipeline operates more than 1,300 miles of pipeline in Oklahoma, second only to Texas' 3,500 miles, according to the report.

>>> Read the full story at Associated Press

Image from U.S. Department of Energy via WikiMedia Commons