EPA Requires Chevron Pipe Line To Provide Funding For Oil Spill Response

$875K settlement with Chevron Pipe Line Company resolves Clean Water Act violations associated with Red Butte Creek and Willard Bay oil spills in Utah

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently reached a settlement with Chevron Pipe Line Company resolving Clean Water Act violations associated with two oil spills at the company’s facilities in Utah. As part of the settlement, the Bellaire, Texas-based company will pay a civil penalty of $875,000. The penalty will be deposited into the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, a fund used by federal agencies to respond to oil spills.

Today’s agreement is associated with two spills from pipelines owned by Chevron Pipe Line. On June 11, 2010, a discharge of approximately 800 barrels of oil from the company’s Rangely to Salt Lake Crude System No. 2 pipeline led to the Red Butte Creek Spill in Salt Lake City, Utah. The oil entered Red Butte Creek and flowed downstream to Liberty Lake, a centerpiece of Liberty Park in downtown Salt Lake City. The lake was closed for nearly a year while cleanup and restoration activities took place.

On March 18, 2013, a discharge of approximately 499 barrels of diesel fuel from the company’s Northwest Products System No. 1 Oil Line in Box Elder County impacted wetlands adjacent to Willard Bay, a reservoir connected to the Great Salt Lake. Soil, surface water, and groundwater contamination at the spill site required extensive containment and clean-up measures. The spill also affected wildlife and caused the temporary closure of Willard Bay State Park. Chevron Pipe Line no longer owns the Northwest Products System.

Today’s settlement follows several recent penalties and compliance actions associated with the Red Butte Creek spill, including agreements between Chevron Pipe Line and the State of Utah, Salt Lake City, and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. In December 2013, the company reached a settlement with the State of Utah which includes penalties and funds for specific damages and restoration and mitigation activities associated with the Willard Bay spill.

Today’s agreement is subject to a 30-day public comment period which will begin on the date the notice of the proposed settlement is published in the Federal Register. A copy of the agreement will be posted at: http://www.usdoj.gov/enrd/Consent_Decrees.html

More information on the Red Butte Creek spill: http://www.deq.utah.gov/locations/redbutte/

More information on the Willard Bay spill: http://www.deq.utah.gov/envrpt/Response/s31.htm