http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/4/22/exxon-mobil-to-pay-5-million-for-arkansas-spill.html
[links in on-line article]
Exxon Mobil firms to pay $5 million for Arkansas oil spill
Two Exxon subsidiaries fined for 2013 rupture of Pegasus oil pipeline
that spilled 134,000 gallons of heavy crude oil
April 22, 2015 10:30AM ET
The Justice Department said Wednesday that two subsidiaries of Exxon
Mobil have agreed to pay almost $5 million in penalties for a 2013 oil
spill in a central Arkansas community.
As part of a consent decree set to be filed in a Little Rock federal
court Wednesday, the companies would pay about $3.2 million in federal
civil penalties in addition to addressing pipeline safety issues and
oil-response capacity. They would pay $1 million in state civil
penalties, $600,000 for a project to improve water quality at Lake
Conway and $280,000 for the state's legal costs, according to the
Justice Department.
The Pegasus pipeline ruptured in March 2013, spilling more than 134,000
gallons of heavy Canadian crude oil into housing subdivision in the town
of Mayflower, located about 25 miles from the capital city of Little
Rock. The oil, which was being carried from Illinois to Texas,
contaminated dozens of homes, forcing residents to evacuate. It also
flowed into a creek, local wetlands and a cove of Lake Conway.
The lawsuit said the Pegasus pipeline was buried less than a meter below
the ground in Mayflower.
“Oil spills like this one in Mayflower, Arkansas have real and lasting
impacts on clean water for communities,” Cynthia Giles, assistant
administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of
Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, said in a statement. “Companies
need to take the necessary precautions to make sure oil is transported
safely and responsibly.”
The ruptured segment of the pipeline has not been used since the spill
and can’t be reinstated until Exxon adheres to all the corrective
actions set out by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
Administration.
Assistant Attorney Gen. John Cruden noted that Exxon Mobil doesn't admit
liability in agreeing to the measures.
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