Planning commission formalizes coastal permit for repaired airport force main after 1,000,000‑gallon spill

The Santa Barbara Planning Commission on May 15 approved a coastal development permit to formalize repairs and cleanup after a broken 24‑inch sewer force main spilled about 1,000,000 gallons near the airport approach at the Goleta Slough.

Airport planner Jessica Metzger told commissioners the break occurred in a force main easement adjacent to the airport access road and that cleanup and repairs began the day after the failure. “It spilled 1,000,000 gallons of sewage,” Metzger said, and the Goleta West Sanitary District repaired the line and removed contaminated soil before the pipe was returned to service.

The permit makes the emergency repairs and subsequent remediation actions consistent with the cityʼs airport/Goleta Slough local coastal program and the Coastal Act, staff said. City staff also concluded the project is exempt from further CEQA review under the cityʼs “existing facilities” exemption and related Public Resources Code exemptions cited in the staff report.

Why it matters:…