The surprise finding in early 2012 led environmental officials to document a major, yet hidden, source of air pollution in the Denver area, one that contributed to the region’s high levels of smog. The investigation culminated with an announcement Wednesday of what Cruden described as a “first-of-its-kind” legal settlement: an estimated $73.4 million agreement aimed at stopping the leaks and improving air quality in Colorado and perhaps far beyond.
The settlement, announced jointly by U.S. and Colorado officials, includes what Justice Department officials estimate to be about $60 million for equipment upgrades at thousands of storage tanks to prevent leaks. Noble Energy, the Texas-based energy company, also consented to a nearly $5 million civil penalty and agreed to contribute $8.5 million to environmental remediation projects.
Justice Department officials said Noble was unaware of the problem, and when shown the evidence, agreed to a costly retrofitting that will reduce future emissions from its operations in oil and gas fields in central Colorado. “We’re hoping this sets a good example for other companies,” Cruden said.
The settlement was one of two announced by Justice officials timed with Wednesday’s Earth Day observance. The second involved a $5 million agreement by ExxonMobil’s pipeline subsidiary resulting from a crude oil spill near Mayflower, Ark.
The Noble settlement stems from a long-running effort by the Environmental Protection Agency and Colorado’s state environmental regulator to find the sources of air pollutants known as volatile organic compounds, or VOCs. The Denver area has long been in violation of federal standards for VOCs, which are major contributors to smog. VOCs are byproducts of numerous man-made chemical processes, include fossil-fuel combustion.
No comments:
Post a Comment