California beach reopens after oil spill

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — Surfers and swimmers returned to the waves Monday at a popular Southern California beach that was shut for more than a week after an undersea pipeline leaked crude oil into the ocean.

The reopening of Huntington Beach — dubbed “Surf City USA” — came far sooner than many expected after a putrid smell blanketed the coast and blobs of crude began washing ashore.

City and state park officials decided to reopen the shoreline in Huntington Beach after water quality tests revealed no detectable levels of oil-associated toxins in the ocean. That was good enough for Andrew Boyack, a 54-year-old commercial photographer, who usually surfs the waves in his hometown three or four times a week but has stayed out since the spill.

“There’s lots of guys out, so I figure it’s probably alright, and I guess they tested it,” Boyack said, while rinsing off at an outdoor beach shower.

“It’s exercise. It’s like, you know, if somebody was a jogger or something. We surf every morning.”

This surf-loving city of 200,000 people and nearby coastal communities have been reeling from the spill. The ocean has been closed, a popular air show canceled, fisheries shuttered and local shops have been walloped. The environmental impact on sensitive wetland habitats has been less severe than initially feared, but advocates say they are concerned about the long-term effects of the spill. The shoreline in nearby Newport Beach also was reopened Monday after water testing revealed no unhealthful levels of oil-related toxins, said John Pope, a city spokesman.