The U.S. Federal court has imposed a fine of $2.5 Million on the Norwegian Shipping Company for the illegal discharge of oil in the Gulf of Mexico.
In November 2014, a spot inspection revealed that a crude oil tanker was illegally discharging oil in the Gulf of Mexico and did not comply with the Act for Prevention of Pollution from Ships. The Coast Guard determined that the ship lacked an oily water separator. Also, the crew failed to maintain the log in which the accidental discharges are to be recorded, indicating the illegal discharge of wastewater. When the Coast Guard boarded the ship for a spot inspection, officers said it did not have the proper environmental equipment and the crew had forged the logs to hide the fact they were illegally discharging the oily wastewater.
The Coast Guard said the ship had discharged 20,000 gallons of oil-contaminated water in just the last two months of its operation.
Evidences showed that DSD officials were aware of the ship operating illegally. A company memo dating back to 2010 showed evidence DSD officials were aware of the potential problem, but continued to allow the ship to operate in violation of U.S. and international laws for another 57 months.
Hence the U.S. Federal court has:
- Imposed a fine of $2.5 million
- Charged four crew members, out of which three have been convicted and sentenced to a six-month jail term. The fourth crew member has pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
- Revoked the four crew members merchant marine licenses and will no longer be allowed to work on cargo vessels in the future.
- Ordered DSD to pay $500,000 to fund marine research in the Gulf Coast region. Also, DSD was placed on three years’ probation.
Source: Department of Justice
