A settlement that would have two subsidiaries of Exxon Mobil pay nearly $5 million in costs and penalties after a 2013 oil spill in Mayflower is a "critical victory" for the city and state as a whole, Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge said.
The proposed consent decree, reported in Wednesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, would require ExxonMobil Pipeline Co. and Mobil Pipe Line Co. to pay $1 million in state civil penalties, $3.19 million in federal civil penalties, $600,000 for environmental projects and $280,000 for litigation costs. The companies are also required to "improve pipeline safety and spill response," Rutledge's office said, and to take other steps before reopening the pipeline, which has been shuttered since the March 29, 2013, spill.
The parties have agreed to the terms of the deal, but it must be approved in federal court after a 30-day public comment period.
“This consent decree is a critical victory for the State and the Mayflower community," Rutledge said in a statement. "ExxonMobil was responsible for the damage to the environment and for disrupting lives of Arkansans. Today, ExxonMobil is being held accountable for the estimated 134,000 gallons of oil that flowed out of the ruptured pipeline.”
The settlement arises from allegations that Exxon violated the federal Clean Water Act and state environmental provisions.
In the statement, Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality Director Becky Keogh said the settlement is a "step forward" and that the money will be put to good use.
"The civil penalty of $1 million will greatly supplement funds available for use to address emergency actions and to address contaminated sites across Arkansas," she said. "ADEQ has agreed to the use of $600,000 in the form of a Supplemental Environmental Project where the immediate local community will realize benefits. The project will improve water quality in Lake Conway and its watershed under a plan approved by and overseen by ADEQ.”
The Pegasus Pipeline rupture sent an estimated 134,000 gallons of heavy crude oil into a Mayflower neighborhood and then into a creek, wetlands and Lake Conway cove.
