County May Seek Funds for Pipeline Study : Environment: The federal dollars would be used to pay for an inventory of the underground network following recent oil spills.

In response to four recent oil spills that fouled local wetlands and rivers, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors is considering applying for a federal grant to inventory the county’s lattice work of underground oil pipes and assess the risk of future pipeline ruptures.

The staff proposal, to be discussed Tuesday, said Federal Emergency Management Agency funds may be available to pay for a study of the pipelines, many of which are not regulated by any government agency.

The supervisors ordered staff members to examine the pipeline issue in December, days after 84,000 gallons of oil leaked from a pipeline into McGrath Lake near Oxnard.

More than 200 birds and other species were killed in the December spill, which released at least 2,000 barrels of heavy crude oil from a leaking Bush Oil pipeline before it was discovered by federal officials Christmas morning.

Since then, smaller oil spills near Piru, Ventura and Santa Paula have raised concerns about the condition, age and location of oil and gas pipelines in Ventura County.

Detailed maps of working and abandoned pipelines do not exist, the county staff report said. A database of all pipes, chemical facilities, fuel tanks and hazardous materials sites should be prepared to help assess the risk of future spills, the report suggests. Such a study could cost up to $750,000, officials said.

But oil industry representatives say a study by the county is unnecessary, since pending legislation would require a statewide inventory and risk assessment.

“We do not oppose a study; what we do oppose is a duplicative effort,” said Catherine Reheis, managing coordinator for Western States Petroleum Assn., which represents about 30 oil companies.

Assemblyman Jack O’Connell (D-Carpinteria) introduced legislation in February that would mandate a statewide pipeline inventory, database and mapping effort.

It would also require a study by the state fire marshal to determine whether regulatory gaps exist. Several state agencies now share regulation of pipelines.

The bill is in the Ways and Means Committee, a spokesman for the assemblyman’s office said.

Reheis also questioned the rationale for using federal disaster funds for a pipeline study. “To take FEMA funds and set up an inventory of pipelines in Ventura County . . . to us is a far stretch,” Reheis said.

Supervisor Susan K. Lacey said the county could not afford to inventory the pipelines and other facilities without the federal grant.

“There may be some really old lines that we don’t even know of yet,” Lacey said. “We need to know where those lines are.”

State officials who regulate pipelines and respond to oil spills said they see nothing wrong with a county conducting its own inventory, regardless of what the state does.

“We aren’t aware of any county that has done this,” said Pam Morris, a spokeswoman for the state Division of Oil and Gas, which regulates pipelines in oil fields but not the long-haul transport lines. “We believe it is a good idea to develop an inventory of pipelines in high-risk areas.”

Oil companies typically keep records of their own pipes, Morris said, but oil spills statewide in recent years have called attention to the need to identify pipes that are at risk of rupture.

“We have had problems,” said Department of Fish and Game Capt. Roger Reese, whose Ventura-based unit responded to the recent spills. “We don’t have an active program to inspect facilities or anticipate spills now. We can use any information . . . to identify where leaks come from when they occur.”

But in meetings with county staff members, oil industry workers downplayed the danger of future leaks, saying “the risk of future oil pipeline spills has been overestimated and that existing regulatory requirements are sufficient,” according to the staff report.

County staff members have met with representatives from most of the oil companies doing business in Ventura County to assess the status of their pipelines.

“It probably would be more appropriate to make sure whatever is done is coordinated through state agencies,” said Chevron Corp. spokesman G. Michael Marcy.

Ray Hatch, vice president of corporate development for Berry Petroleum, declined to comment on the proposal, saying, “I really don’t know what they’re looking at.”

Hatch said his company is putting together a comprehensive plan for the Department of Fish and Game, detailing pipeline sites and other data. He said many oil companies are taking similar actions on their own.

McDonald is a Times correspondent. Wilson is a Times staff writer.