[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 224 (Tuesday, November 20, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58604-58605]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-25211]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Oil 
Pollution Act

    On November 9, 2018, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed 
Consent Decree with the United States District Court for the Eastern 
District of Louisiana in the lawsuit entitled United States of America 
and State of Louisiana v. Hess Corporation, Civil Action No. 2:18-cv-
10727. The United States is acting at the request of the designated 
federal trustee: The United States Department of the Interior, through 
the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The State of Louisiana 
(the ``State'') is acting through its designated State trustees: The 
Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator's Office, Department of Public Safety, 
Louisiana Department of Natural Resources, Louisiana Department of 
Environmental Quality, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, 
and the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority.
    The United States and the State have filed a Complaint against Hess 
Corporation (``Hess'') under Section 1002 of the Oil Pollution Act 
(``OPA''), 33 U.S.C. 2702, and Section 2480 of the Louisiana Oil Spill 
Prevention and Response Act (``OSPRA''), La. Rev. Stat. 30:2480, for 
the recovery of damages for injury to, destruction of, loss of, or loss 
of use of natural resources, plus the unreimbursed costs of assessing 
such injuries, resulting from Hess's crude oil discharge into the Gulf 
of Mexico from its offshore platform in Block 51 of Breton Sound, 
Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, on or about June 12, 2005.
    Under the proposed Consent Decree, Hess will pay a total of 
$8,723,394.88. Of this total, Hess will pay $8.630 million to the 
trustees to restore, replace, or acquire the equivalent of the natural 
resources allegedly injured, destroyed, or lost as a result of the oil 
spill and $93,394.88 to reimburse the trustees for all remaining unpaid 
assessment costs.
    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 of America and State of Louisiana v. 
Hess Corporation, D.J. Ref. No. 90-11-3-11785. All comments must be 
submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the publication date of 
this notice. Comments may be submitted by either email or by mail:

[[Page 58605]]



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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 website: 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 $7.25 (25 cents per page 
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.

Thomas Carroll,
Assistant Section Chief,Environmental Enforcement Section,Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2018-25211 Filed 11-19-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P