German Company Pays for Not Reporting Hazardos Conditions
A German company has been sentenced to pay a $1 million fine and another $250,000 to support environmental causes after pleading guilty to two felony environmental charges related to a cargo ship that entered the Port of Long Beach last year with an open crack in its hull that may have caused oil to leak into the port. The company – Herm. Dauelsberg GmbH & Co. KG – pleaded guilty yesterday morning and was sentenced immediately by United States District Judge George H. Wu. The…
Pumping of Remaining Erika Fuel Set To Begin
The first of five pollution-fighting vessels was to arrive in the French port of Brest on Monday to prepare to pump out tons of viscous fuel oil still lying in the hold of the sunken tanker Erika. TotalFinaElf is bringing in the vessels as part of a massive clean-up program after the Erika, the Maltese-registered tanker it contracted to transport 25,000 tons of thick fuel oil, broke up and sank last December. As part of a clean-up operation costing the company about $70 million, TotalFinaElf is now starting work on removing the oil still lying in the hull of the sunken tanker.
French Officials Demand Stricter Maritime Regulations
French Environment Ministry Officials have demanded tougher maritime laws as thick fuel oil from a tanker that split up one week ago edges closer to the country's Atlantic coastline. For the fourth day in a row, strong winds prevented navy vessels from pumping up scattered slicks of oil in the sea south of the Brittany coast. Officials said that maritime traffic laws must be strengthened. "One cannot approve of a system that uses old tubs, underpaid sailors and minimizes controls," one official was quoted as saying. The 25-year-old tanker Erika, carrying 25,000 tons of fuel oil, broke in two last Sunday in heavy seas. The bow and stern both sank on Monday, and experts estimate that between 8,000 and 15,000 tons of oil have escaped from the ship's various holds.
