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Author Topic: Mutated Fish, Eyeless Shrimp, Clawless Crabs: GOM Fisheries Devastated  (Read 28598 times)

Offline thorfourwinds

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Greetings:

We recently noticed that inexplicably (most likely aliens   :P )
a few of our straggler photo files hosted on ATS disappeared,
so we fixed them - and figured it might be a good reminder of
what's been going on for some time in America to bump this story.   :P

We will also add 2015 updates at the end of the thread.

Mutated Fish, Eyeless Shrimp, Clawless Crabs: GOM Fisheries Devastated



tfw
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Offline thorfourwinds

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Offline thorfourwinds

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Massive BP Oil Spill in Gulf of Mexico images & Timeline

Uploaded on May 29, 2010

This is a timeline of the Gulf of Mexico BP Oil Spill set to music.

Images are from April 20, 2010 to May 25, 2010.

This video was put together out of disgust for what has happened showing images of sludge in the water and there is a section that shows oiled birds both alive and dead.
« Last Edit: May 25, 2019, 03:27:21 pm by zorgon »
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Offline zorgon

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Gulf of Mexico...

Did you know that when the oil spill happened the reason they had so much trouble sealing the hole was because the METHANE PRESSURE was 30-40 times HIGHER than normal in an oil well?

This pressure was responsible for blowing out the repairs and killing off a lot of fishes

Look at some of the numbers here

Dr. Joye knew she had to act fast if she wanted to learn how microbes respond to such a massive methane infusion in the deep sea. By May 5, just two weeks after the spill began, her team was out on the water to collect the first deep-sea water samples from around the wellhead. Along with her colleagues, she collected more than 2,000 water samples on ten research cruises, with the last collected on December 3, 2010, months after the spill was officially over. Back in the lab, her crew measured methane and microbes in each sample to reconstruct methane dynamics in the area around the well. Because the gas was released in cold, deep water under a lot of pressure, it dissolved instead of bubbling to the surface, and formed a cloud-like plume at around 4,000 feet (1,200 meters) depth. Dr. Joye's samples showed that around 70,000-times more methane was present in this plume than in the surrounding water.

Once dissolved, methane is available to be eaten by microbes. Just 11 days after the start of the spill, there were already methane-eating microbes, called methanotrophs, growing in the plume. "This is not an organism that was common or abundant" in the Gulf prior to the spill, said Dr. Joye. "They were there in very low abundance, but when put in the right conditions, they flourished." They grew slowly at first, but once they reached their peak in early June, the microbes were consuming methane at among the fastest rates ever reported for the open ocean—some 60,000-times faster than methanotrophs living at a methane seep.


http://ocean.si.edu/ocean-news/how-methane-fueled-food-web-after-gulf-oil-spill


At approximately 9:45 pm CDT, on 20 April 2010, high-pressure methane gas from the well expanded into the drilling riser and rose into the drilling rig, where it ignited and exploded, engulfing the platform

Yes had BP not been drilling there the leak may not have happened. HOWEVER since the oil and gas IS down there, a shift in the ocean floor or an earthquake could just as easily have released it.

Mother Earth has GAS  Lots of it lately

Why now?  I don't think we know. It may have always been a cycle but we never recorded it. The Methane Blow Holes in Siberia are a perfect example

So I guess we will have to learn to eat Mutated Gulf Shrimp and Nuclear Tuna... or stop eating fish.  It might be hazardous to your health.

 ::)


Offline thorfourwinds

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[youtube]_KgFBciS_X0[/youtube]


The Big Fix - BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Cover up - YouTube[/url]

Published on Dec 27, 2012
A documentary that examines the April 2010 oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
following the sinking of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig.
« Last Edit: May 25, 2019, 03:27:59 pm by zorgon »
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Offline thorfourwinds

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[youtube]zcZ9MLDuIl0[/youtube]



Published on Feb 22, 2015
Ed Schultz continues his investigation into the Deepwater Horizon
oil spill five years on, as it continues to wreak havoc on the Gulf Coast.



[youtube]lVwpP2Fm6hE[/youtube]



Published on Mar 17, 2015
BBC The Tragic Oil Spill of America - Stephen Fry Documentary
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Offline Shasta56

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I don't recall seeing this thread before.  I find that disturbing,  but it had nothing to do with Dancing With the Stars or Cupcake Wars.  Maybe I just wasn't supposed to see it until now.

Anyway,  I expect that NOAA still participates in any number of classified operations.  My dad worked for ESSA years ago,  and I know much of his work was classified.   ESSA was the forerunner of NOAA.   I have concluded that even a government official with a butt full of birdshot would deny any connection to the events leading up to the aforementioned butt.

Shasta
Daughter of Sekhmet

Offline thorfourwinds

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The 14-Year-Long Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico No One is Talking About

Contrary to what you might have been taught, oil spills are actually quite common. In fact, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that there are about 70 oil spills each day. In one year, this amounts to approximately 1.3 million gallons (or 4.9 million liters) being spilled into U.S. waters. When a large oil spill occurs, that number can easily be doubled. As frustrating as this present reality is, there is a more substantial oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that has been ignored for 14 years. As a result, it now verges on becoming one of the worst offshore disasters in U.S. history.

The Washington Post reports that 12 miles off the Louisiana coast, between 300 and 700 barrels of oil are spewing into the ocean each day. The spill began in 2004 when an oil-production platform owned by Taylor Energy was damaged during Hurricane Ivan. Because the platform sank into a mudslide, many of the wells were left uncapped.

14 years later, the wells are still leaking oil into the Gulf of Mexico. To make matters worse, there is no fix in sight. In fact, federal officials estimate that the spill won’t be resolved until the end of this century. Because of this, the Taylor offshore spill is likely to overtake BP’s Deepwater Horizon incident as the largest-ever.

Why No One Has Heard About the Taylor Energy Spill
Oil spills are no joke, primarily because they damage a company’s reputation. It is for this reason that the Taylor Energy company went to great lengths to keep the spill a secret. Six years after the incident, however, environmental watchdog groups stumbled across the polluted waters with a rainbow-colored oil slick. They were monitoring the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster just a few miles away.

Reportedly, Taylor Energy did alert the U.S. Coast Guard National Response Center (NRC) about the spill. But, rather than conduct an investigation, the NRC used data from the company citing that the spill is leaking only one-to-55 barrels each day. A new analysis conducted by the Justice Department in September reveals the inaccuracy. “There is abundant evidence that supports the fact that these reports from NRC are incorrect,” wrote Oscar Garcia-Pineda, a geoscience consultant who specializes in remote sensing of oil spills.  “My conclusion is that NRC reports are not reliable.”

The Coast Guard monitored the spill for more than half a decade without making the public fully away of the mess. Then, in July 2008, the Coast Guard informed Taylor Energy that the spill is “a continuous, unsecured crude oil discharge” that poses “a significant threat to the environment,” according to a lawsuit between Taylor Energy and its insurer.

Following this development, the company made a deal with federal officials and established a $666 million trust to stop the spill. The Washington Post reports, “Taylor Energy spent a fortune to pluck the deck of the platform from the ocean and plug about a third of the wells. It built a kind of shield to keep the crude from rising.” Despite the company’s many efforts, however, the oil kept leaking.

In the past decade, legal processes have devastated Taylor Energy. For this reason, the company now seeks to walk away from the problem and sue the Interior Department in federal court to seek “the return of about $450 million left in a trust established with the government to fund its work to recover part of the wreckage and locate wells buried under 100 feet of muck,” according to The Washington Post. 

In the 14 years since the spill, government officials still don’t know the disaster’s full impact on marine life. There is no economic analysis outlining the value of the oil flowing into the sea or potential royalties lost to taxpayers. What activists are demanding is that the oil spill is first contained. Then, an in-depth analysis determining the effect the spill will have (and has had) on marshland and beaches needs to be conducted. 
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Offline zorgon

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Taylor Energy spill contained after 14 years: Coast Guard
Posted May 16, 2019



Oil collected from the Taylor Energy spill site. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard.)

Quote
By Sara Sneath, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

A long-running oil leak 11 miles south of the Louisiana shoreline is finally being contained, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. More than 30,000 gallons of oil have been captured from the site of the leak and transported to shore.

Taylor Energy is responsible for the spill, which began in 2004 when Hurricane Ivan triggered an underwater mudslide that toppled a platform and damaged 25 connected wells. While several wells were plugged and containment domes were installed, a sheen continued to be seen on the water surface above the downed platform.

A 2018 report based on an independent analysis of satellite imagery by geoscientist Oscar Pineda-Garcia concluded that the leak is in the magnitude of 249 barrels to 697 barrels per day, far exceeding previous estimates. Taylor Energy disputes the report findings. The company has said that the sheen is the result of contaminated sediment on the seafloor, not an active leak.

But after the 2018 report was released, the U.S. Coast Guard ordered Taylor Energy to take action to contain the spill under the Clean Water Act. Arguing that the company failed to do so, the U.S. Coast Guard hired a private contractor based out of Belle Chasse to contain the leak.

The containment device is now fully installed and capturing oil. “After monitoring the system for several weeks we have determined that the system is meeting federal containment standards,” Capt. Kristi Luttrell, the Coast Guard’s federal on-scene coordinator for the incident, is quoted as saying in a news release. “At this time the system is working and the once predominately large surface sheen has been reduced to barely visible. We will continue to monitor the containment system’s performance and make necessary adjustments to maximize containment of the spill.”


A diver works on the containment installation amidst oil plumes at the site of the Taylor Energy spill. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Coast Guard.)

Quote
Taylor Energy sued the Coast Guard for taking over the spill response and contracting a remediation company to cap the spill. That lawsuit is ongoing.

In a status update submitted to the court on Tuesday (May 15), the Coast Guard said that the containment system has captured more than 30,000 gallons of oil. The oil was pumped out of the containment system and transported to shore, according to the status update.

In light of the success of the containment device, the Coast Guard will ask for a summary judgement, according to the status update. A summary judgement would end the case without a trial.

On Tuesday (May 15), a federal judge granted Healthy Gulf, a New Orleans-based environmental advocacy group, permission to intervene in the lawsuit. As an intervenor, the group can file legal briefs voicing its concern for possible environmental damage caused by the oil leak.

"After 14 years, we are glad the Coast Guard is taking action to contain this runaway oil spill,” Dustin Renaud, communications director for Healthy Gulf, is quoted as saying in a news release. “Now we must make sure that they follow through on a permanent solution and ensure a spill like this never goes unchecked again. Rather than relying on industry self-reporting in the future, we must employ independent science and hold companies accountable to the law.”

https://www.nola.com/environment/2019/05/taylor-energy-spill-contained-after-14-years-coast-guard.html

Offline zorgon

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Environmental group seeks to intervene in lawsuit over Taylor Energy spill
Posted Mar 28, 2019



Taylor Energy's oil production platform at Mississippi Canyon, Block 20, in the Gulf of Mexico before and after Hurricane Ivan. (Images from Taylor Energy documents)

Quote
By Sara Sneath, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

An environmental group is seeking to intervene in the legal dispute between Taylor Energy Company and the U.S. Coast Guard over the company’s handling of a long-running oil leak at a site 10 miles Southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Healthy Gulf, formerly known as Gulf Restoration Network, filed a motion to intervene in the suit, filed by Taylor Energy in response to the Coast Guard’s order requiring the company to contain the leak. The environmental group seeks to support the order, said Cynthia Sarthou, executive director of Healthy Gulf.

“Something needs to be done to stop that continuing discharge,” she said. “Our job is to protect the natural resources for the Gulf of Mexico. That’s what our mission is.”

The leak has been ongoing for 14 years. It began in 2004 when Hurricane Ivan triggered an underwater mudslide that toppled a platform and damaged 25 connected wells. Department of Interior regulations required to permanently plug and remove the abandoned offshore lease within one year. But the well bores were buried under 150 feet of mud and sediment in a “tangled web" making it difficult for the company to decommission the site.

As a result, federal officials allowed Taylor Energy more time to explore alternatives for decommissioning the well, according to court documents. Since 2004, nine wells have been plugged and containment domes were placed over three areas that were leaking. But a crude oil sheen has continued to be visible on the ocean surface above the downed platform. The platform remains on the seabed, partially buried and about 550 feet downslope from its original location.

The Coast Guard and Taylor Energy are in disagreement about how much oil is leaking from the site and the source of the leak.

Federal authorities say one or more wells are actively leaking oil and gas, and that the leak could be in the order of hundreds of barrels per day. They base their position on multiple side-scan surveys beginning in 2012 and continuing into 2018, which found plumes flowing from the seafloor near the downed platform, according to court documents. A 2018 report based on an independent analysis of satellite imagery by geoscientist Oscar Pineda-Garcia concluded that the leak is in the magnitude of 249 barrels to 697 barrels per day, far exceeding previous estimates.

https://www.nola.com/environment/2019/03/environmental-group-seeks-to-intervene-in-lawsuit-over-taylor-energy-spill.html

Offline zorgon

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14-year Taylor Energy oil leak could prove larger than BP spill, new research says
Updated Feb 15, 2019; Posted Feb 15, 2019



Site of the Taylor Energy platform.

Quote
By Tristan Baurick, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

A toppled oil platform that has been leaking into the Gulf of Mexico for more than 14 years may have released much more oil than recent estimates have indicated, possibly pushing the total volume well beyond BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil disaster.

New research indicates 2,100 to 71,400 gallons of oil are escaping each day from the Taylor Energy platform site, about 10 miles from the mouth of the Mississippi River. The high estimate of 71,400 gallons per day is more than two times larger than the highest potential rate cited by the Coast Guard when it ordered Taylor to fix the problem late last year.

At the higher rate, and added up over the past 14 years and four months, the Taylor leak could top the 2010 BP disaster by more than 241 million gallons, potentially making it one of the largest – and slowest – oil disasters in history.

University of South Florida marine scientist Shaojie Sun presented the new oil release estimates at the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill and Ecosystem Conference in New Orleans last week. He stressed that his estimated range is extremely wide. While the total Taylor Energy release could soar as high 375 million gallons, it may also be as low as 11 million gallons.

Either way, the Taylor site has been an unchecked and overlooked problem for far too long, said Ian MacDonald, an oil spill expert and oceanographer at Florida State University.

“There is a significant oil flow from that site,” he said. “It doesn’t vanish into the ether with no impact.”

Quote
The BP disaster, by comparison, spilled about 134 million gallons into the Gulf over 87 days in 2010. While the Taylor leak could be larger, oil from the Deepwater Horizon platform gushed at a much faster rate over a shorter period of time. It devastated the coastlines of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and west Florida, whereas the Taylor leak appears to flow away from the coast due, in part, to its proximity to the Mississippi River, which pushes the oil out to sea.


It’s unclear how much ecological harm the Taylor leak has caused.

“We don’t know what natural resources have been damaged in any scientific sense or any (economic) sense,” MacDonald said. Until recently, much of the research at the site had been led by Taylor, which presented the leak as having a negligible effect on the environment.

Sun’s research was limited to assessing the leak’s size, and did not explore environmental damage. He based his assessment on more than a decade’s worth of satellite imagery of the Taylor site and surrounding area. To calculate the oil’s thickness, Sun used a standard estimate of 95 percent “thin” oil and 5 percent “thick” oil used by oil spill responders. Thin oil is about .04 microns, and thick oil is 5 microns. A human hair is about 70 microns in diameter.

The oily discharge has increased over the years, according to Sun’s analysis. In 2005, the sheen was visible on about 40 percent of the cloud-free satellite images. Between 2006 and 2011, the sheen was visible 70 percent of the time. The percentage grew to about 80 percent after 2012. On average, the sheen covered 7.7 square miles.

Taylor disputes Sun’s discharge estimates.

“They’re based on generalities,” said Wade Bryant, an environmental scientist hired by Taylor, noting Sun’s reliance on standard oil thickness estimates. “They are not directly related to exact measurements at the site.”

The wells at the Taylor site were relatively low in pressure. The former platform’s production of about 46,000 gallons of oil per day required pressurized gas injections. Christopher Reddy, a marine scientist hired by Taylor to assess the site, has said it’s unlikely the platform site could leak at the much higher estimated rates without pressurization.

Taylor’s platform, known as MC-20 Saratoga, was destroyed by Hurricane Ivan on Sept. 15, 2004. The storm triggered an underwater mudslide that snapped the 550-foot-tall platform’s legs and buried a cluster of wells. Taylor plugged some of the 28 wells and installed three pyramid-shaped oil containment structures.

For much of the past decade, the Coast Guard and other federal agencies have relied on Taylor to track the leak’s volume and lead oil containment efforts. That changed late last year after an independent study requested by the federal government estimated the leak at 10,500 to 29,000 gallons per day – a far greater amount than any estimate from Taylor or federal regulators.

The Coast Guard directed Taylor to “eliminate the surface sheen” with a new containment system. When Taylor balked, the Coast Guard went ahead and hired a marine contractor, Belle Chasse-based Couvillion Group, and is billing Taylor for the work.

https://www.nola.com/environment/2019/02/14-year-taylor-energy-oil-leak-could-be-two-times-larger-than-bp-spill-new-research-says.html

Offline zorgon

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Coast Guard and Taylor Energy disagree over source of 14-year Gulf oil leak
Posted Dec 5, 2018



A U.S. Coast Guard boat floats near an oily sheen floating over the Taylor Energy platform site in the Gulf of Mexico.

Quote
By Tristan Baurick, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

The U.S. Coast Guard isn’t buying Taylor Energy’s explanation about what’s causing the oil company’s 14-year-old leak in the Gulf of Mexico.

Scientists hired by Taylor Energy say an oil-soaked area of seafloor is producing a large sheen that frequently appears on the water’s surface near the site of the company’s damaged MC-20 Saratoga oil platform. But in a letter sent to Taylor Energy, Coast Guard officials countered that there’s not enough oil in the seafloor to produce the tens of thousands of gallons they say are seeping from the site each day. The cause, according to the Coast Guard, is one or more leaky wells that were damaged when Hurricane Ivan toppled the platform in 2004.

The Coast Guard recently ordered Taylor Energy to fix the problem or face fines of up to $40,000 per day. The order was prompted by a new estimate that put the daily release of oil between 10,500 to 29,000 gallons. Added up over 14 years, the platform has produced one of the largest and longest-running oil spills in North America, according to estimates cited by the Coast Guard.

The new leak estimates are far larger than the ones Taylor Energy provided federal authorities over the years, which had characterized the release as little more than a trickle. The Coast Guard had mostly deferred to the oil company until an independent assessment was requested by the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees offshore drilling.

Last month, Taylor Energy President Will Pecue said the new leak amounts cited by the Coast Guard are “ridiculous” and “based on erroneous science.” He believes the larger estimates are aimed at bolstering the government’s case for a cleanup or containment operation that could cost up to $1 billion.

Christopher Reddy, a marine scientist hired by Taylor Energy, said the wells don’t have enough natural pressure to expel the vast quantities of oil. He said oil that had possibly spilled years ago has saturated the mud around the platform site. According to Reddy, it’s likely that the surface sheens are produced from oil bubbling out of the seafloor sediment. He cautioned that any cleanup work at the site could release a large quantity of oil. Most sheens are produced when the seafloor is disturbed, Taylor Energy officials say.

After the 2018 report was released, the U.S. Coast Guard ordered Taylor Energy to take action to contain the spill under the Clean Water Act. Arguing that the company failed to do so, the U.S. Coast Guard hired a private contractor based out of Belle Chasse to contain the leak.

But Taylor Energy disputes the 2018 report findings. In a recent news release, the company called information cited by the Coast Guard “junk science.” The company maintains that the sheen on the water surface above the downed platform is from contaminated sediment on the seafloor, not an active leak. Taylor Energy argues that containment efforts would cause oil that’s currently trapped to be released causing “far more environmental harm than good.”

The company has also filed a lawsuit against the contractor hired by the U.S. Coast Guard, Couvillion Group, LLC. Taylor Energy claims that more oil is already being released as a result of Couvillion’s work.

“The evidence is already apparent. The observed sheen volumes have spiked higher since the Coast Guard’s contractor began work at the site,” the company argues in a Taylor Energy website about the dispute. “The Coast Guard is acting recklessly and with unprecedented secrecy, underscoring Taylor Energy’s concern for the potential harm to the environment," the website reads.


Taylor Energy did not respond to questions about the lawsuit and containment efforts. Couvillion Group owner Timothy Couvillion said his company has made progress on installing the containment system.

“The majority of the preparations prior to installing the containment equipment have been completed and installation of the components will take place over the next few weeks,” Couvillion wrote in an email.

On Friday (March 22), the U.S. Coast Guard challenged Taylor Energy’s ability to support some of the claims in the company’s lawsuit. In a motion to dismiss parts of Taylor’s lawsuit, the Coast Guard argued the company has not provided any information to support its assertion that Couvillion’s containment system will cause environmental damage.

The Coast Guard also said Taylor has failed to show how possible damage to the environment would cause injury to Taylor Energy itself. “The ongoing damage to the marine environment will continue unabated without any containment,” the Coast Guard’s filing reads.

If Healthy Gulf gets intervenor status in the case, the group would be permitted to file legal briefs voicing its concern for possible environmental damage caused by the oil leak, said Chris Eaton, an attorney with Earthjustice acting on behalf of Healthy Gulf.

“It’s important to have a voice in this case from the local community to help show the court why the Coast Guard’s actions are appropriate and necessary,” he said.

https://www.nola.com/environment/2018/12/coast-guard-and-taylor-energy-disagree-over-source-of-14-year-gulf-oil-leak.html

Offline zorgon

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12 years after Gulf oil platform destroyed, feds start investigating environmental damage
Updated Jul 28, 2017;
https://www.nola.com/environment/2017/07/federal_damage_assessment_for.html


Buried oil from Deepwater Horizon disaster still harming wetlands
Updated Jul 20, 2017; Posted Jul 20, 2017
https://www.nola.com/environment/2017/07/buried_oil_from_deepwater_hori.html

BP's final tab for the 2010 Gulf oil spill? $61.6 billion
Updated Jul 14, 2016; Posted Jul 14, 2016
https://www.nola.com/business/2016/07/bp_gulf_oil_spill_cost_estimat.html

Taylor Energy agrees to share Gulf oil leak documents
Updated Sep 22, 2016; Posted Sep 22, 2016
https://www.nola.com/business/2016/09/taylor_energy_agrees_to_share.html

Coast Guard orders Taylor Energy to stop 14-year oil leak
Updated Nov 20, 2018; Posted Nov 20, 2018
https://www.nola.com/environment/2018/12/coast-guard-and-taylor-energy-disagree-over-source-of-14-year-gulf-oil-leak.html

Offline space otter

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because this area where i live has become a big deal fracking-wise and what they are doing to get pipe lines thur farm land i try to keep up with the subject
and thought you might be interested to read this



https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-and-partners-announce-sunoco-pipeline-and-mid-valley-pipeline-settle-oil-spill

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News Releases from Region 06
EPA and Partners Announce Sunoco Pipeline and Mid-Valley Pipeline Settle Oil Spill Violations with $5M Civil Penalty

01/31/2019
Contact Information:
Jennah Durant or Joe Hubbard (R6Press@epa.gov)


Quote
DALLAS – (Jan. 31, 2019) In the latest joint federal-state Clean Water Act enforcement action, Sunoco Pipeline L.P. has agreed to pay civil penalties and state enforcement costs and to implement corrective measures to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Water Act and state environmental laws by Sunoco and Mid-Valley Pipeline Company stemming from three crude oil spills in 2013, 2014, and 2015, in Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma.

The Department of Justice, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) jointly announced the settlement.

Under a proposed consent decree lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Sunoco will pay the United States $5 million in federal civil penalties for the Clean Water Act violations and pay LDEQ $436,274.20 for civil penalties and response costs to resolve claims asserted in a complaint filed today. Additionally, Sunoco agreed to take actions to prevent future spills by identifying and remediating the types of problems that caused the prior spills. This includes performing pipeline inspections and repairing pipeline defects that could lead to future spills. Sunoco is also required to take steps to prevent and detect corrosion in pipeline segments that Sunoco is no longer using. Mid-Valley, the owner of the pipeline that spilled oil in Louisiana, is responsible, along with Sunoco, for payment of the civil penalties and state costs relating to the Louisiana spill.

“This settlement holds Sunoco and Mid-Valley accountable for the harms to the environment caused by their oil spills and requires Sunoco to improve its environmental safety compliance for the oil pipelines that it operates in Texas, Louisiana, and Oklahoma,” said Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This excellent result shows how a strong federal and state partnership can bring about effective environmental enforcement to protect local communities in these states.” 

“My office is committed to protecting Louisiana’s environment for the health, well-being, and enjoyment of our citizens,” said U.S. Attorney David C. Joseph for the Western District of Louisiana. “This settlement is but one example of my commitment to work with the Environmental Protection Agency and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality to make Louisiana a cleaner and healthier place to live.”

“Our nation relies on the oil and gas sector to meet our energy needs, and we also expect companies to do so while protecting our vital water resources,” said EPA Regional Administrator Anne Idsal. “Companies who violate this responsibility must face consequences and assure their future compliance.”

“Pipelines are generally a very safe medium for transporting crude oil, but like any other infrastructure, pipelines require maintenance and monitoring. When companies neglect these necessary actions, pipelines can weaken and a spill can occur, which results in damage to the environment,” said LDEQ Secretary Dr. Chuck Carr Brown. “LDEQ is committed to pursuing legal action against anyone whose actions cause damage to the environment of the state of Louisiana.”

The complaint alleges federal and state claims relating to three crude oil spills: a 2013 spill of 550 barrels in Tyler County, Texas; a 2014 spill of approximately 4,500 barrels in Caddo Parish, near Mooringsport, Louisiana; and a 2015 spill of 40 barrels in Grant County, Oklahoma. The Texas spill affected Russell Creek, which flows to the Neches River. The Louisiana spill—the largest of the three—flowed to Tete Bayou, a tributary of Caddo Lake. The Oklahoma spill flowed into two creeks that flow to the Arkansas River, affecting an area of about a half a mile. All three spills resulted from pipeline corrosion.

The Clean Water Act makes it unlawful to discharge oil or hazardous substances into or upon the navigable waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines in quantities that may be harmful to the environment or public health. The penalty paid to the United States will be deposited in the federal Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund managed by the National Pollution Funds Center. Those funds will be available to pay for federal response activities and to compensate for damages when there is a discharge or substantial threat of discharge of oil or hazardous substances to waters of the United States or adjoining shorelines.

The proposed consent decree is subject to a public comment requirements and court review and approval.  A copy of the consent decree is available on the Department of Justice website at www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.

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Offline space otter

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https://www.philly.com/news/pennsylvania/mariner-east-pipeline-sunoco-lawsuit-chester-county-pa-20190410.html

Chester County sues Sunoco over Mariner East pipeline
by Erin McCarthy, Updated: April 10, 2019



Quote
Chester County has sued Sunoco over its controversial Mariner East pipelines, asking the court to prohibit the company from starting construction on two county-owned properties, the county commissioners said Wednesday.

This marks the first time county officials have initiated a civil suit over the project, although in February they intervened in an existing legal challenge brought by several residents from Delaware and Chester Counties against Sunoco and its parent company, Energy Transfer Partners, involving safety risks.

RELATED STORIES
Remaining life of Mariner East pipeline built in 1931? Sunoco offers to study, after 2017 gas leak
Pennsylvania launches criminal investigation into Mariner East pipeline project
Mariner East pipeline target of possible Chester County Commission legal action

further in the article

Quote
Sunoco’s $5.1 billion plan is to build three adjacent pipelines, which would transport natural gas liquids such as propane from western Pennsylvania to the Sunoco refinery in Marcus Hook.

Over the last several months, Chester County District Attorney Thomas P. Hogan, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro, and Delaware County District Attorney Katayoun M. Copeland have launched criminal investigations into the project’s construction, citing environmental risks and safety concerns.






......................................

https://www.ldnews.com/story/news/local/pennsylvania/2019/02/08/energy-transfer-pipeline-construction-permits-stopped-pa/2815229002/

Pa. stops construction permits for pipeline company that runs Mariner East lines
Marc Levy, Associated Press Published 2:57 p.m. ET Feb. 8, 2019
« Last Edit: May 25, 2019, 03:21:31 pm by space otter »

 


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