I grew up in Manhattan Beach in the early 60’s. At the time all SoCal beaches were full of Tar and it was everywhere. You couldn’t walk in the sand without getting it all over you. Beachfront property wasn’t worth much because of it. Then they put all those drilling rigs offshore and the problem of seepage pretty much disappeared and the beaches were cleaned up in just a few short years.
Aunt and uncle in Santa Barbra say the same thing. Since they started drilling off of the coast the beach is cleaner.