Crude Oil Spills: Pipeline Operators Agree $12.5 Million Pay for Civil Penalty

Two pipeline operators, Belle Fourche Pipeline Company and Bridger Pipeline LLC, have agreed to pay a $12.5 million civil penalty as a result of crude oil spills in Montana and North Dakota. The settlement was announced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a federal court lawsuit.
The spills occurred in 2015 and 2016. In 2015, Bridger’s Poplar Pipeline broke, resulting in a spill of over 50,000 gallons of crude oil into the Yellowstone River near Glendive, Montana. The cleanup of the site has been completed, and in 2021, Bridger settled a lawsuit with federal and Montana authorities for $2 million.
In 2016, Belle Fourche’s Bicentennial Pipeline in Billings County, North Dakota, broke due to a landslide, causing a spill of over 600,000 gallons of oil. The spill impacted an unnamed tributary, Ash Coulee Creek, and the Little Missouri River. Cleanup efforts are ongoing under the oversight of North Dakota’s Department of Environmental Quality.
While this agreement resolves some of the claims related to the spills, it does not fully resolve all issues with the Ash Coulee spill, and the government retains the right to bring future legal claims.
The $12.5 million civil penalty includes over $4.6 million for North Dakota’s Department of Environmental Quality. Belle Fourche will also pay the state’s past response costs, totaling over $98,000.
The agreement also includes requirements for the operators to implement specified compliance measures to prevent future spills. These measures are in addition to the civil penalty.
Belle Fourche and Bridger are owned by Wyoming-based True Companies. Both operators have completed required remediation actions, according to Bill Salvin, a spokesman for Bridger. Upgrades have been made to the pipeline network, including a new control center and leak detection system.
The settlement holds the pipeline operators accountable for the environmental damage caused by the spills and emphasizes the importance of taking measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.

Source: energyportal.eu

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