Polar Tankers to Pay $588K for 2004 Spill
Polar Tankers Inc., a subsidiary of ConocoPhillips Co., has agreed to pay $588,000 to help compensate the public for environmental harm caused by the October 2004 crude oil spill into Puget Sound’s Dalco Passage near Tacoma. The payment would come under a proposed settlement agreement or consent decree filed this week in U.S. District Court, Western Washington Division involving Polar Tankers and the United States, state of Washington, Muckleshoot Indian Tribe and Puyallup Tribe of Indians. A consent decree in federal court makes no finding of guilt or innocence. The U.S. Attorney General’s action was made at the request of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S.
Polar Tankers Receives Ecology Award
Representatives from Washington Department of Ecology and the oil tank vessel industry met in Seattle on July 29 to award Polar Tankers with Ecology’s Exceptional Compliance Program (ECOPRO) Award. The award was given to the subsidiary of ConocoPhillips Co. for achieving excellence in marine safety and environmental stewardship. Polar Tankers operates U.S.-flagged crude oil tankers on the West Coast including Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska, Hawaii and Canada. Its five modern, Endeavour Class tankers are specifically designed to carry crude oil in an environmentally safe manner.
Finalists Named for DOI’s 2006 Safety Awards for Excellence (SAFE)
Fifteen offshore energy companies have been named national finalists for the Department of the Interior’s 2006 Safety Awards for Excellence (SAFE) competition. Sponsored by the Minerals Management Service (MMS), the SAFE awards are presented annually to Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and gas operators and contractors who achieve excellence in safety and pollution prevention. Established in 1983, the SAFE Awards recognize and honor companies making concerted efforts to train and motivate their employees to conduct offshore operations in a safe and environmentally responsible manner. The SAFE Award is presented annually to offshore…
ConocoPhillips to Pay Fine for 2004 Spill
The owner of the Polar Texas - the oil tanker that spilled more than 1,000 gallons of crude oil into Puget Sound's Dalco Passage on Oct. 13, 2004 - will pay in full a $540,000 fine levied by the Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology). The ship - which has since been decommissioned - belonged to Polar Tankers, Inc., a subsidiary of ConocoPhillips Co. The $540,000 fine is the largest fine Ecology has ever issued for a spill in marine waters, and is the maximum possible penalty under state law. Negotiations continue, meanwhile, on a state-federal-tribal damage assessment that is separate from the penalty. Funds from this assessment would be placed in a fund that supports restoration projects that compensate Washington citizens for damage to the public's environmental resources.
