[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 34 (Thursday, March 4, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S2343]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         EXXON VALDEZ OILSPILL

 Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, this month is the 10th anniversary 
of the infamous Exxon Valdez oilspill. On March 24, 1989, one of 
Exxon's largest tankers, under the command of a captain who had been 
drinking and had abandoned the bridge, struck Bligh Reef and spilled 11 
million gallons of North Slope crude oil into the pristine waters of 
Prince William Sound.
  The Exxon Valdez oilspill remains the largest man-made environmental 
disaster in American history. The oil spread almost 600 miles, harming 
wildlife, closing fisheries, and damaging the subsistence way of life 
of Alaska Natives living in the region. To its credit, Exxon spent as 
much as $2-3 billion trying to rectify the effects of the spill, but 
much damage remains.
  The spill brought home to all of us in the Pacific Northwest a deeper 
appreciation for the importance of preventing oilspills. Clean water, a 
vibrant fishery, and abundant wildlife are all parts of our Northwest 
way of life, and they are all at risk to oilspills.
  In Commerce Committee hearings shortly after the spill, I told the 
Exxon CEO that a Japanese CEO would have been expected to resign after 
such a calamity. I said this not to be unkind, but because of my 
strongly-held view that oilspills caused by a company's reckless 
conduct cannot be tolerated.
  It is now 10 years later, and Exxon is ready to move on. It has 
announced its intention to merge with Mobil, creating the largest 
corporation in the world, with annual revenues of over $180 billion.
  The federal government is in the process of reviewing this proposed 
merger. I object to the merger of Exxon and Mobil unless Exxon first 
resolves some important unfinished business resulting from the 1989 
spill. That unfinished business is the litigation brought by the tens 
of thousands of fishermen, small business owners, and Alaska Natives 
who were harmed by the spill.
  About 6,500 of these people live in Washington State. They, too, 
would like to move on with their lives, but they can't. They have been 
waiting ten years since the spill, and almost five years since a 
federal jury determined that Exxon should pay them over $5 billion.
  They will be waiting a lot longer if Exxon has its way. Every year of 
delay is worth about $400 million to Exxon, the difference between the 
6 percent interest rate on the $5 billion judgment and Exxon's own rate 
of return of about 14 percent on the same $5 billion. If this case 
drags on long enough, Exxon will be able to pay most of the jury 
verdict out of money that it made solely because of the delay in paying 
the judgment.
  Exxon has appealed the jury verdict, raising a number of issues. This 
is to be expected in a case involving this much money. But while this 
case crawls through our court system, the victims are left waiting for 
closure to a horrible event that changed their lives forever, and they 
are waiting for a sense that justice has been done. We need to find a 
way to meet these perfectly understandable human needs. Exxon has the 
power and resources to make that happen.
  We need to send the strongest possible message to Exxon and other oil 
companies: you use our waterways to transport your product, and you 
know the consequences if your product spills, so it is your duty to 
take every precaution. If you act recklessly, you will pay dearly.
  That message is fading after 10 years, and will be largely lost after 
a merger of these proportions. Now, before the merger, we have an 
opportunity to make an indelible impression on what would be the 
largest corporation on Earth--that an oilspill like this must never 
happen again.

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