Tag: oil spill

  The Disclosure and Transparency Rules (“DTR”) made by the Financial Conduct Authority govern amongst other matters the disclosure of inside information. Accordingly in compliance with Rule 2.2, BP plc makes the following announcement: Five years on from the Deepwater Horizon accident and spill in 2010, BP has reached agreements in principle to settle all federal and state claims arising from the event. BP announced that its US Upstream subsidiary, BP Exploration and Production Inc (BPXP) has executed the agreements with the US federal government and five Gulf Coast states. The agreement with the states of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas also includes settlement of claims made by more than 400 local government entities. The principal payments are as follows: BPXP is to pay the United States a civil penalty of $5.5 billion under the Clean Water Act (CWA) – payable over 15 years. BPXP will pay $7.1 billion to the United States and the five Gulf states over 15 years for natural resource damages (NRD). This is in addition to the $1 billion already committed for early restoration. BPXP will also set aside an additional amount of $232 million to be added to the NRD interest payment at ...

  When an on-land pipeline ruptured north of Santa Barbara, California, on May 19—spilling 105,000 barrels of crude oil onto Refugio State Beach and about 21,000 gallons of oil into the Pacific Ocean in the north Santa Barbara Channel—it created an environmental nightmare for local beaches and wildlife. In support of the response to the Refugio Incident, as it is known, NASA deployed a De Havilland Twin Otter aircraft carrying a unique airborne instrument developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, to study the spill and test the ability of imaging spectroscopy to map tar on area beaches. The work is advancing our nation's ability to respond to future oil spills. The JPL-built Airborne Visible Infrared Imaging Spectrometer, Next Generation (AVIRIS-NG) instrument uses spectroscopic measurement of energy reflected from Earth's surface to determine surface properties. In this case, AVIRIS-NG focused on applying imaging spectroscopy to the problem of accurately mapping the presence of oil-derived tar balls on the beaches, using direct, on-the-ground observations to verify the remote sensing data. AVIRIS-NG can capture spectral imagery that is commonly used to map ecosystems, minerals, land use and trace gases. Prior to the flights, a team of scientists led by Principal Investigator ...

  The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is responding to a report of an oil sheen about 150-feet by 200-feet in size in DuSable Harbor. USCG pollution responders on scene believe the sheen was caused by diesel originating from a 30-foot pleasure craft moored in the harbor. Sorbent boom and sorbent pads have been deployed to contain and recover the product.  The USCG received notification of the discharge around 12:45 p.m. The DuSable Harbor harbormaster, Chicago Fire Department and Police Department Marine Unit are also on scene and have secured the source of the discharge. Source: USCGIn the starting, I was straightforward with you propecia before and after has changed my life. It has become much more fun, and now I have to run. Just as it is incredible to sit.

  The Government of India approved a proposal for the country’s accession to an international convention which ensures compensation for damage caused by ship bunker oil spills. The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved the Ministry of Shipping's proposal for India's accession to the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage, 2001 (Bunker Convention) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) as well as to amend the Merchant Shipping Act, 1958 to give effect to the Bunker Convention, Nairobi Convention and Salvage Convention. The Bunker Convention ensures adequate, prompt, and effective compensation for damage caused by spills of oil, when carried as fuel in ships' bunkers. The territorial jurisdiction for damage compensation extends to territorial sea and exclusive economic zones. It applies to an Indian vessel, wherever it is situated, and to a foreign flag vessel while it is within Indian jurisdiction. The registered owner of every vessel has to maintain compulsory insurance cover which allows claim for compensation for pollution damage to be brought directly against an insurer. Every ship above one thousand gross tonnage has to carry a certificate on board to the effect that it maintains insurance or other financial ...

  Herm. Dauelsberg GmbH & Co. KG, a German company, was sentenced in federal court to pay a total of $750,000 in fines and community service payments for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships by intentionally discharging 1,780 gallons of oily water into the sea off the coast of Alaska and then presenting false records to the U.S. Coast Guard. Herm. Dauelsberg was also ordered to implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan and was placed on probation for three years.  During the term of probation, Herm. Dauelsberg will be subject to a heightened level of scrutiny, including warrantless searches of its vessels and places of business based upon a reasonable suspicion that it is violating the law.  Of the total payment, Herm. Dauelsberg will pay $600,000 in criminal fines and $150,000 in community restitution.   The community restitution payment will go to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to be used for research, projects, and education designed to study and/or benefit the marine environment within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the United States off the coast of Alaska and/or the natural resources or wildlife contained therein near Alaska. Defendant Herm. Dauelsberg is the operator of the Motor Vessel Lindavia.  ...

  AML Ship Management GMBH, a German company, was sentenced in federal court to pay a total of $800,000 in fines and community service payments for violating the Clean Water Act and the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships by intentionally discharging 4,500 gallons of oily bilge water into the ocean off the coast of Alaska and then presenting false records to the U.S. Coast Guard. AML was also ordered to implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan and was placed on probation for three years.  During the term of probation, AML will be subject to a heightened level of scrutiny, including warrantless searches of its vessels and places of business based upon a reasonable suspicion that it is violating the law.  Of the total payment, AML will pay $675,000 in criminal fines and $125,000 in community restitution.   The community restitution payment will go to the Alaska SeaLife Center to be used for projects and research that have a nexus to the Clean Water Act oil pollution crime committed. Chief Engineer Nicolas Sassin was sentenced in Oregon to serve five months of home confinement followed by five years of probation for his role in these offenses.  The Court in Oregon found ...

  The Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board (C-NLOPB) has laid four charges against Hibernia Management and Development Company Ltd. (HMDC) for alleged offences related to the spilling of crude oil from the offshore loading system of the Hibernia Platform. Based on the information obtained during the investigation process, C-NLOPB Conservation Officers allege that HMDC caused or permitted crude oil to be spilled into the Offshore Area, failed to take all reasonable measures to prevent a further spill, and restarted work that had been suspended because of a spill while that spill was ongoing. C-NLOPB Conservation Officers also allege that HMDC failed to fully report the particulars in the manner required by the applicable regulations. The C-NLOPB is the independent joint agency of the Governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador responsible for the regulatory oversight of petroleum-related activities in the Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Area, including; health and safety for offshore workers, protection of the environment, management and conservation of offshore petroleum resources, compliance with the provisions of the Accord Acts that deal with Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador employment and industrial benefits, issuance of licences for offshore exploration and development, and resource evaluation, data collection, curation and distribution. Source: C-NLOPBIn the ...

  The City of Vancouver’s ocean-dependent industries are a crucial economic driver to the City and its “Greenest City” reputation. A new study concludes that both of these could be negatively impacted by an oil spill as a result of a nearly seven-fold increase in tanker traffic, from 5 to 34 per month, resulting from Kinder Morgan Canada’s pipeline expansion proposal. The report, titled “Potential economic impact of a tanker spill on ocean-dependent activities in Vancouver, British Columbia” concludes that a major oil spill (16 million litres) could negatively impact Vancouver’s marine dependent economy by $380 million-1.23 billion in output value. The report looks at the performance of Vancouver’s five key ocean-dependent activities that are closely linked to the condition of the marine environment: Commercial fishing Port activities (shipping and cruises) Inner harbour transportation Tourism (marine recreation, waterfront events, visiting beaches and seawall) Recreation The report analyzes a 16 million litre spill scenario at the First or Second Narrows in May and in October, and finds that the Vancouver economy experiences larger losses under a May spill scenario than an October spill scenario since roughly 50% of ocean-based economic activity occurs during peak tourist season between May 15-Sep.1. Total economic ...

  On-site workers acted quickly to contain an oil leak during the final stages of removing the wreck of the MV Miner off Scaterie Island, the government of Canada’s Nova Scotia province reports. "Thankfully, the contractor already had preventative actions in place and contained the spill immediately," said Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal Minister Geoff MacLellan. "No heavy oil got past the containment oil booms and the lobster fishery is not affected. I'm very grateful for their quick work and especially for their pro-active measures to contain the leak." The contractor, RJ MacIsaac Construction, was planning to remove the last remaining engine from the wreck site. Because it was a large ocean-going engine, the company expected oil could be an environmental risk and took appropriate preventive measures. Divers videoed the remaining wreckage and a comprehensive plan to contain any oil leak was prepared. Oil containment booms were placed around the wreckage and oil absorption materials were on-site before trying to remove the engine. Once it became clear a leak had happened the containment plan was implemented. "Without the controlled salvage of the vessel and implementation of an adequate oil-containment plan, the oil would now be released into local fishing grounds," said Mr. ...

  On 18 February 2015 a condensate leak occurred on the Gudrun platform in the North Sea. The incident has been investigated by Statoil’s corporate investigation team which classifies it to be of the highest degree of seriousness. In the morning of 18 February 2015 noise and vibrations were reported on Gudrun. Shortly afterwards hydrocarbons were confirmed in the process module. There was a 2 mm wide crack extending approximately 90% across the circumference of a two-inch pipeline. Condensate had leaked from the pipeline and resulted in gas distribution. The actual leak rate is calculated to be around 8 kilogram/second. The volume of condensate from the leak is estimated to 4 cubic metres. No one was injured as no personnel were present in the area. The investigation concludes that the outcome could have been fatal if anybody had been exposed to the leak. A gas leak of this size represents a major incident potential if ignited. “The condensate leak on Gudrun was serious with major incident potential,” says Øystein Arvid Håland, senior vice president of safety and sustainability of Development and Production Norway. “Statoil is working systematically on gas leak prevention, and the learnings from this incident shall be translated ...