SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — California Attorney General Kamala Harris and prosecutors in eight counties are suing oil company BP over alleged environmental violations involving the underground storage tanks at hundreds of Arco stations.
In a suit filed Friday in Alameda County Superior Court, Harris and the prosecutors allege that dating back to October 2006 the tanks at 780 Arco stations were not properly maintained and inspected. The civil suit also claims that the leak detection devices and alarm systems on the tanks were tampered with.
The stations are operated by BP subsidiaries BP West Coast Products, BP Products North America, Inc., and Atlantic Richfield Company.
A spokesman for BP described the alleged incidents as "procedural violations" and said there was no potential harm to human health or the environment.
The lawsuit follows a similar suit filed last month against ConocoPhillips and its spinoff, Phillips 66.
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