By
The Associated Press
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - More than 92,000 gallons of saltwater and crude oil soaked nearly an acre of tundra in what officials say may be one of the largest spills on the state's North Slope oil region over the past five years.
The spill was apparently caused by corrosion in a pipe, said Ed Meggert, head of oil spill response with the state Department of Environmental Conservation in Fairbanks.
The spill contained little oil. The water is fluid removed from crude oil and contains up to 3 percent crude oil.
The leak occurred at Phillips Alaska's Kuparuk oil field, which is North America's second largest. By midday Monday, Phillips Alaska said it had cleaned up most of the spill.
The spill was discovered at 11:30 p.m. Sunday and the line was shut down within 12 minutes, the Department of Environmental Conservation said.
It was the fourth major spill on the North Slope this winter and the second believed to be caused by erosion or corrosion, a growing problem in the area.
