A failed pressurized sewer main caused an estimated 500-gallon sewage spill near the Santa Barbara Airport last week, according to incident reports.
The Goleta West Sanitary District responded and reported the incident to the state and county, initially thinking the equipment belonged to the sanitary district, but the failed pressurized main was determined to be owned by the City of Santa Barbara.
California Office of Emergency Services spill release reports indicate that a spill last Thursday was caused by a failed pressurized sewer main. The wastewater material was released onto a grassy area on airport property.
Responding crews shut down the pump, stopping the release, and cleanup was done with a vacuum truck, according to incident reports.
Santa Barbara Airport staff identified a leak in a sewage line on Thursday afternoon and maintenance crews responded, airport spokeswoman Lauren Gonzales said in an email.
They coordinated with local partners to make repairs, she said, and the pipe was patched by Friday evening.
The spill was contained to airport property and did not reach any waterways or the Goleta Slough, according to Gonzales.
“One of the airport’s smaller runways (15R) was temporarily closed while repairs took place. There was no impact to flight operations during this time,” she said.
The pipeline that leaked serves a small number of customers on the north side of the airport, according to Gonzales.
Goleta West Sanitary District representatives said its staff and contractors were investigating a wastewater spill near one of its pipelines and discovered that a city wastewater pipeline was also present in the area.
“When the pipeline was exposed, it was determined to be the cause of the spill,” General Manager Joey Hilliard said.
Goleta West alerted the city and provided mutual aid in the spill response, he said.
The sanitary district “is committed to transparency and acted promptly in response to initial evidence of a spill from a GWSD pipeline,” he said in an email. “Based on the best information it had at the time, a concerted effort was made to ensure that the public was informed.”
The sanitary district recently reached a settlement with state regulators for the 2024 spill near the airport that released more than 1 million gallons of raw sewage into the Goleta Slough and the ocean. That settlement includes paying a $1.55 million civil penalty.
The discharge continued for about 14 hours before district staff identified and stopped it, according to investigators. The spill was caused by external corrosion on a section of underground pipe.
Editor’s note: Goleta West’s comments were initially attributed to spokesperson Lea Boyd. The story has been updated to credit general manager Joey Hilliard.