#038: 01-19-01 $83.5 MILLION SETTLEMENT REACHED IN 1994 PUERTO RICO OIL SPILL

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CIV/ENRD FRIDAY, JANUARY 19, 2001 (202) 514-2007 WWW.USDOJ.GOV TDD (202) 514-1888 $83.5 MILLION SETTLEMENT REACHED IN 1994 PUERTO RICO OIL SPILL WASHINGTON, DC -- Caribbean Petroleum Corporation, MetLife Capital Corporation and Water Quality Insurance Syndicate will pay $83.5 million to the United States and Commonwealth of Puerto Rico to settle claims related to a 1994 barge grounding that caused an 800,000 gallon oil spill, the Justice Department announced today. The parties will reimburse the United States for the costs the government incurred while removing oil and cleaning up beaches and other areas near San Juan, Puerto Rico, which included damage claims submitted by fishermen, hotels and small businesses. The settlement also compensates natural resource trustees of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico for injuries to natural resources and for assessment costs, and the Commonwealth for its economic claims. On January 7, 1994, the barge MORRIS J. BERMAN ran aground off the coast of Puerto Rico as it was under tow with the tug EMILY S from San Juan to Antigua, British West Indies. The ship, carrying a cargo of almost 1.5 million gallons of oil, discharged fuel oil into the surrounding waters and beaches. The owners and operators of the barge assisted in cleaning up the oil for the first several days. The Coast Guard then undertook the remainder of the cleanup effort, which took over five months of continuous response activity, including the processing of approximately one thousand damage claims using funds from the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. The Fund, created by Congress in 1990 following the Exxon Valdez spill, provides money to respond to oil spills and to pay damage claims. Under the settlement, $60 million will be deposited into the Fund, the largest recovery in the Fund's history. "This settlement again demonstrates the United States' commitment to protecting the nation's waters and natural resources," said David W. Ogden, Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Civil Division. During the oil pollution incident, the barge crushed a reef and discharged oil onto nearby land, affecting beaches and parklands in Puerto Rico. Natural resource trustees - including the United States Department of the Interior, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources - assessed the damage and determined that it was appropriate to address injuries to the reef and injuries related to the public's loss of use of beaches and historic sites. A plan with proposed restoration projects will be made available soon for public comment. "This settlement is key to reversing damage to the reef, beaches, and National Park Service sites," said Lois J. Schiffer, the Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division at the Justice Department. "I commend the natural resource trustees for their hard work to restore Puerto Rico's unique natural environment." "This case provides a good example of the massive interagency effort to protect the marine environment and ensure responsible behavior from shippers," said Admiral James M. Loy, Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard. The settlement agreement was filed in U.S. District Court in Puerto Rico on behalf of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. ### 01-038