More than a decade after an oil spill devastated a Mayflower neighborhood and much of the wildlife in nearby wetlands, a federal judge has approved a settlement between ExxonMobil Pipeline Co. and the state and federal governments.
The proposed settlement was first announced in June. Under the agreement, the Texas-based oil giant and a related entity, Mobil Pipe Line Co., would make a roughly $1.8 million payment, plus interest, for damages to natural resources that resulted from the March 29, 2013, pipeline rupture.
Chief Judge Kristine G. Baker approved the proposed agreement in U.S. District Court in Little Rock on Thursday and said there was no need for a hearing to take testimony. She found the agreement “fair, reasonable, and adequate, and consistent with the Oil Pollution Act.”
Restoration projects covered in the agreement would include preservation of about 40 acres of forested habitat, conversion of about four acres of agricultural land to over-wintering habitat suitable for migratory waterfowl, and programs to improve recreational fishing on Lake Conway.
The spill occurred when the aging, 850-mile-long Pegasus Pipeline ruptured in Mayflower’s Northwoods subdivision and spilled about 3,190 barrels of heavy crude oil into the neighborhood, waterways and wetlands. The oil also entered Dawson Cove, a section of Lake Conway, where it damaged or destroyed habitat; harmed plants and wildlife, including migratory birds; and impacted activities such as fishing.
An estimated 210,000 gallons of oil spilled from the pipeline. Residents of at least 22 houses had to evacuate, and ExxonMobil later bought numerous homes in the area and demolished at least three due to oil beneath the foundations.
In our June magazine, the Arkansas Times looked back at our coverage of the disaster, aided by a crowd-funding campaign and a partnership with InsideClimate News.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
