"SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California water quality regulators have asked state Attorney General Kamala Harris to consider enforcement action against the owner of an oil pipeline that ruptured near Santa Barbara in May, spilling petroleum onto beaches and the Pacific Ocean.

The Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board said on Monday that it had referred the incident near Refugio State Beach to the state's top prosecutor, who under the law could seek penalties of up to $25,000 per day of violation, plus $25 for every gallon of oil spilled.

"The Water Board will work closely with the Attorney General's office to make sure all those responsible for the Refugio spill face the strongest enforcement measures allowed by law," Board Chair Jean-Pierre Wolff said in a news release."

Sharon Bernstein reports for Reuters August 3, 2015. [2]