Photo Courtesy of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council
Once again, Exxon has been charged with endangering and in this case killing wild birds through negligence. The justice department is charging the oil giant with killing migratory birds in three Kansas counties. The complaint alleges that the company allowed the birds to come into contact with “hydrocarbons.” The press release did not specify that the hydrocarbon in question was oil or the manner in which the birds died except to say that the material was kept in tanks. The Environmental Crimes Unit of the Justice Department is pursuing the criminal complaint which is a misdemeanor according to current statutes.
Exxon, of course, is best known among environmentalists for the massive oil spill in Alaska’s Prince William Sound caused by the reckless piloting of the Exxon Valdez. What isn’t well known, however, is that Exxon has been tying up the courts fighting the original damage award of $5 billion dollars since the accident occurred twenty years ago in 1989. After several appeals, Exxon finally whittled the award down to a meager $507.5 million dollars with a 2006 court decision. Now, a further ruling has decided that Exxon owes interest on the damages dating back to 1996 when the first damage claim was awarded by the courts. That amounts to another $480 million in interest. In its decision, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ordered Exxon to pay its own legal fees of $70 million, in addition to the damages and interest.
Exxon did pay an estimated $3.5 billion in efforts to clean up the mess at the time of the accident as well, but, apparently, this sum wasn’t enough for the company to learn its lesson. As recently as February of 2008, US News and World Report found that Exxon was still using a single hulled oil tanker in Prince William Sound, exposing this already damaged ecosystem to a risk of another spill. Thankfully, single hulled oil tankers are scheduled to be phased out of operation in 2010 due to requirements placed on treaty nations by the International Maritime Organization, although some nations including the US have asked for an extension until 2015.
Meanwhile, as the Justice Department’s complaint shows, it seems that Exxon’s alleged misconduct has moved inland to kill bird species they may have missed with the Valdez.
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Comments
Makes as much sense as charging Sullenberger with negligence for killing birds before he landed in the Hudson.
If he had been drunk and left the pilot's cabin unattended, he would have been charged with more than that... Remember, that's what happened with the Exxon Valdez. The Kansas incident is leaving hazardous chemicals out in the open exposed to wildlife, just plain negligence.
Thanks for the report Brad. Single Hulled ships after all this time is damning and unconscionable of Exxon.
Haywood,
While I am encouraged by Exxon's guilty plea and their agreement to pay the fines involved, it is the continued culture of apathy, or rather profit first motivation, that is the real problem. While wind power has it's problems as well, the vast majority of associated bird deaths can and have been reduced by continuously improving the methodologies and design of wind power generators. When you add in the broader ecological effects of burning fossil fuels, wind power is far safer for birds, and other animals including human beings. More info about the ways in which wind turbines are reducing bird mortality can be found here: treehugger.com/files/2006/04/common_misconce.php
By the way, Haywood, you post was deleted for profanity. Please try to keep the discussion civil.
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