[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 83 (Friday, April 29, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 25716-25717]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-10105]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean 
Water Act

    On April 22, 2016, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed 
Consent Decree in the United States District

[[Page 25717]]

Court for the Middle District of Louisiana in the lawsuit titled United 
States and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality v. ORB 
Exploration, LLC, Civil Action No. 16-260-JJB-RLB.
    This case concerns three oil spills, one in 2013 and two in 2015, 
at locations in the Atchafalaya River Basin, from oil production 
facilities owned and operated by ORB Exploration, LLC (ORB), as well as 
ORB's failure to comply with a Coast Guard order issued during the 
cleanup of one of the spills or with certain Spill Prevention, Control, 
and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulations promulgated by the Environmental 
Protection Agency under the CWA. The largest spill occurred in 2013 at 
ORB's facilities located at Frog Lake in Iberville Parish, near Baton 
Rouge, Louisiana, when a corroded transfer pipeline ruptured and 
spilled a large amount of crude oil, estimated at more than 1,000 
barrels, into a flooded wetland area. The second spill occurred in 
September of 2015, also at ORB's Frog Lake facilities. The third spill 
occurred in October of 2015 at an ORB facility at Crocodile Bayou in 
St. Martin Parish, Louisiana. The SPCC violations were discovered 
during a May 2015 inspection of ORB's oil storage barge at Frog Lake.
    In the Complaint, the United States alleges violations of Sections 
301(a), 311(b)(7)(A) or (D), 311(b)(7)(B)(ii) and 311(b)(7)(C) of the 
CWA, 33 U.S.C. 1311(a), 1321(b)(7)(A) or (D), 1321(b)(7)(B)(ii), and 
1321(b)(7)(C). In addition, the Louisiana Department of Environmental 
Quality (LDEQ) alleges violations of La. R. S. 30:2076(A)(1) and (3), 
and Louisiana Administrative Code sections 33:IX.501.A, 33:IX.1701.B, 
33:I.3915.A.3, and 33:I.3925.A, for the discharges of oil and ORB's 
failures to file a timely report or provide updated notice to the state 
hotline for reporting spills. The Complaint seeks the assessment of 
civil penalties, State response costs, and injunctive relief for the 
alleged violations. The proposed Consent Decree resolves the civil 
penalty, State response cost, and injunctive relief claims of the 
United States and LDEQ for the causes of action alleged in the 
Complaint by requiring ORB to perform corrective measures focused on 
spill detection and prevention and pay federal civil penalties of 
$615,000 and State civil penalties and response costs of $100,000.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the proposed Consent Decree. Comments should be addressed to the 
Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, 
and should refer to United States and Louisiana Department of 
Environmental Quality v. ORB Exploration, LLC, D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-1-1-
11281. All comments must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days 
after the publication date of this notice. Comments may be submitted 
either by email or by mail:

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         To submit comments:                     Send them to:
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By email............................  [email protected].
By mail.............................  Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
                                       DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
                                       Washington, DC 20044-7611.
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    During the public comment period, the proposed Consent Decree may 
be examined and downloaded at this Justice Department Web site: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of 
the proposed Consent Decree upon written request and payment of 
reproduction costs. Please mail your request and payment to: Consent 
Decree Library, U.S. DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-
7611.
    Please enclose a check or money order for $7.50 (25 cents per page 
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.

Jeffrey K. Sands,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2016-10105 Filed 4-28-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P