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State lawmakers grill BP over Olympic Pipeline leak

FILE - In this Aug. 1, 2017 file photo, the oil producer BP company logo at a petrol station in London is shown. BP, a major player on Alaska's North Slope for decades, is selling all of its assets in the state, the company announced Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2019. Hilcorp Alaska is purchasing BP interests in both the Prudhoe Bay oil field and the trans-Alaska pipeline for $5.6 billion, BP announced in a release.(AP Photo/Caroline Spiezio) Photo: Contributed


OLYMPIA, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – State lawmakers are demanding answers following a nearly two-weeklong shutdown on the Olympic Pipeline.

U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen was among eight members of Congress who wrote a letter to BP’s North America CEO Wednesday, Dec. 10.

They voiced their concerns over the latest incident in what’s been a “decades-long history” of spills along the pipeline.

The leak was first reported in Snohomish County on Nov. 11, and BP shut the pipeline down several days later before fully reopening it on Dec. 1. BP says it recovered nearly 2,300 gallons of fuel, though there still isn’t a full estimate of how much leaked.

That’s among the many questions lawmakers have for BP, along with how it plans to address any contamination and prevent it from happening again in the future.

They’re asking BP to respond to the questions by Jan. 8, 2026.

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