FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                         ENR
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1997                          (202) 514-2008
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888

                                 
 COLONIAL PIPELINE COMPANY AGREES TO UP TO $4 MILLION SETTLEMENT
         FOR 1993 OIL SPILL THAT DESPOILED SUGARLAND RUN
                      AND THE POTOMAC RIVER


     Washington, D.C. - Colonial Pipeline Company today agreed to
pay a $1.5 million fine and spend up to 2.5$ million to restore
natural resources in and around Sugarland Run and the Potomac
River, which were damaged by a massive 1993 oil spill from the
company's pipeline in Reston, Virginia.

     The proposed settlement was lodged today by the Justice
Department in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, on behalf of the
U.S. Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection
Agency, Virginia, and the District of Columbia. 
 
     The spill, which occurred in March 1993, released about
407,000 gallons of diesel fuel into Sugarland Run.  Despite
emergency efforts to contain the spill, about 48 square miles of
surface water, shorelines, islands and wetlands were contaminated. 
The entire length of Sugarland Run was severely contaminated,
threatening water supplies in Virginia, Maryland and the District
of Columbia.  The oil flowed down Sugarland Run and into the
Potomac River, creating oil slicks on the river. 
 
     "The Colonial pipeline spill was a tragedy, but today's
settlement will heal the environmental damage that was inflicted
upon the waters of the Potomac," said Lois Schiffer, Assistant
Attorney General in charge of the Justice Department's Environment
and Natural Resources Division.  "The environmental restoration and
enhancement projects that Colonial will perform will help protect
the natural integrity of the waters in and around our nation's
capital."

     "The fine is a reminder to Colonial and others that polluters
will pay a price over and above just restoring what they have
damaged," said Steve Herman, EPA's Assistant Administrator for
Enforcement and Compliance Assurance.  "The environmental
improvement projects that Colonial must perform will be good news
to the citizens of Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia who use
the Potomac River and its adjacent lands for boating, hiking and
other forms of recreation."

     "Pollution freely crosses state boundaries, and has no regard
for bureaucratic structures," said EPA Regional Administrator W.
Michael McCabe.  "Today's settlement shows the benefits of federal
and state cooperation in enforcing our nation's environmental
laws."

     The spill, which occurred during the height of the white perch
spawning run in these waters, killed or injured fish, birds,
reptiles, and mammals.  Wildlife also were injured by the damage
the spill inflicted upon their environment and food sources.  Some
federal park areas had to be closed to the public because of the
spill.  

     Under the proposed settlement, Colonial will pay a $1.5
million civil penalty, to be split evenly between the federal
government and Virginia, and reimburse the federal government,
Virginia and the District of Columbia for the costs of assessing
damages to natural resources.  Also, Colonial will pay $253,314 to
help fund the construction of a fish passage over Little Falls Dam
on the Potomac River that will be built by the District of
Columbia, Maryland, and the Army Corps of Engineers. 
 
     The proposed settlement also requires Colonial to restore or
rehabilitate natural resources in and around Sugarland Run and the
Potomac River that were damaged by the spill, and pay the
monitoring and oversight costs of these projects.  These projects
include restoring wetlands, aquatic habitats and enhancing forests. 
They are designed to compensate the public for depriving it of the
use and enjoyment of parklands affected by the spill.  Other
projects the company will perform include constructing a bike path
near Herndon linking the Washington and Old Dominion Trail to the
Fairfax County Sugarland Run trail, a wildlife observation area at
Dyke Marsh Wildlife Preserve near Belle Haven Marina in the George
Washington Memorial Parkway, and storm water management controls in
the Sugarland Run area. 
    
     The settlement is the result of more than four years of
studies and negotiations among representatives of Colonial, the
Interior Department, the Environmental Protection Agency, Virginia,
and the District of Columbia.

     The settlement will be published in the Federal Register and
is subject to a thirty day public comment period.
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97-437