Citgo faces penalties after Calcasieu spill

• By RICHARD BURGESS
• Advocate Acadiana bureau
• Published: Jun 26, 2008 - Page: 1BA - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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LAKE CHARLES — Citgo Petroleum could face millions of dollars in penalties in a federal Clean Water Act lawsuit filed this week for a June 2006 oil spill at the company’s Lake Charles refinery.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Quality are seeking reimbursement related to the response and fines of up to $4,300 for each of the estimated 53,000 barrels of slop oil that leaked into area waterways.

Citgo declined comment on the litigation through spokeswoman Shawn Trahan.

The spill, among the largest in state history, forced the closure of parts of the Calcasieu Ship Channel for more than two weeks as crews worked to contain the slop oil — a mixture of oil, water and other waste substances from the refinery process.

The waste product is generally held in tanks and reprocessed to capture the usable oil.

The June 2006 spill occurred after a storm dumped 11 inches of rain over a short period, causing two slop oil tanks to overflow into a containment area, according to DEQ records.

About 2.2 million gallons of the slop oil then seeped out of the containment area, according to the lawsuit.

DEQ has alleged that the spill occurred because Citgo allowed too much waste oil to build up in the tanks, partly because of faulty equipment.

Citgo is scheduled to meet next month with state and federal officials to discuss a possible settlement to the Clean Water Act lawsuit, DEQ attorney Ted Broyles said.

Citgo is already facing an administrative compliance order from DEQ that could result in additional penalties.

Broyles said the DEQ action also addresses past alleged environmental violations at the refinery from 2001 to 2006.

He said no firm numbers have been worked up on the potential penalties and recovery cost, and he could not speculate on what Citgo might be asked to pay in the massive spill.

“I don’t think we have had a precedent of this magnitude,” Broyles said.