A Buellton-area property owner has sued Sable Offshore Corp. over the oil pipeline that runs through their property. They argue that the company should get a new easement or reroute it before restarting operations.
Zaca Preserve LLC filed a lawsuit earlier this month claiming Sable should get a new easement, build a new pipeline on the property, or reroute the pipeline around the property before restarting. Or, the company should buy the land, the complaint says.
Sable is attempting to restart operations that have been paused since the line ruptured and caused the 2015 Refugio Oil Spill.
Zaca Preserve argues that the previous owner, Plains All American, said the pipeline was abandoned in 2017, according to the Oct. 3 lawsuit filed by Todd Amspoker and Jeff Tchakarov of Price, Postel & Parma LLP.
The 138-acre Zaca Preserve property includes a residential subdivision with 20-acre estate lots approved by the county, the lawsuit says.
"However, the stigma caused by the Pipeline, which is legally required to be disclosed to any potential buyers of the premium lots within Zaca's property, now exposes Zaca to millions of dollars of lost property value."
The "valuable subdivision" would be worth more than $40 million "were it not for the extreme negative stigma caused by defendants' negligence and the 2015 blowout" and Sable's restart plans, the lawsuit claims.
A civil complaint represents only the plaintiff's side of a story, and defendants will likely file documents responding to the allegations in the coming months.
Sable representatives had not filed an answer in court as of Friday. A case management conference is scheduled for January.
While dozens of landowners with pipeline easements opted into a class-action settlement with Sable earlier this year, Zaca Preserve didn't.
"The reason Zaca has opted out is because the relief provided in the class-action settlement is not remotely adequate to satisfy Zaca's losses," attorneys wrote in the complaint.
Class-action counsel Barry Cappello said at the time that the settlement compensated landowners at least $50,000 and the average payment was $230,000.
The settlement also said the landowner class members will not take action preventing regulatory approvals for pipeline restart and operation.
The lawsuit comes as Sable Offshore Corp. is in trouble for working on the Gaviota Coast portion of the pipeline without a coastal development permit.
The California Coastal Commission issued a notice of violation on Sept. 27 and had to follow up multiple times before Sable actually stopped the work a week later.
Coastal Commission enforcement staff are talking with Sable on plans to "button up" the work sites and get a comprehensive list of what was completed, said Lisa Haage, chief of enforcement.
Sable said it was doing repair and maintenance work that didn't require a permit.
"Commission staff does not agree with this for a variety of reasons," including the extent of the work and the location of the work, Haage said.
Santa Barbara County and Sable reached a legal settlement over installing safety valves, but a settlement doesn't negate the Coastal Act, or the need for appropriate permits, she added.
Sable took over ExxonMobil's Santa Ynez Unit oil and gas production facilities earlier this year, including the pipeline, and is still in the process of transferring permits and leases.
The State Lands Commission met in closed session last week to talk about assigning leases for offshore oil and gas pipelines in state waters to Sable. No action was reported.
On Wednesday, the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission will consider transferring operating permits to Sable.
That meeting is scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday at the County Engineering Building, Room 17 at 123 East Anapamu St.