Unocal pledges to clean up big Guadalupe spill. (Guadalupe oil field, California)

Unocal Corp. has pledged an open ended budget to clean up a massive underground spill of a kerosine/diesel mix diluent in California's Guadalupe oil field that went unreported for years.

In making the pledge, Unocal Vice Pres. John Imle Jr. offered a public apology on behalf of the Company. Imle promised an open ended budget to clean up at least 113 acres underlying the 2,300 acre field in San Luis Obispo County. Unocal has spent more than $2 million for Guadalupe remediation since 1990. It has operated the field for more than 40 years, using the diluent to thin Guadalupe heavy crude for pipeline shipment.

The company is negotiating with private landowners with interests in the field for a permanenet shut-in while …