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Millions of barrels of oil spilled in 2010 Gulf of Mexico disaster: U.S. federal judge

Xinhua, January 16, 2015 Adjust font size:

A federal judge in the U.S. city of New Orleans, Louisiana ruled on Thursday that a total of 3.19 million barrels of oil were spilled during the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil disaster, which was reportedly caused by the British oil giant BP's "gross negligence".

U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier acknowledged on Thursday in his ruling that "there is no way to know with precision" how much oil flowed into the Gulf during the disaster, but he decided on the 3.19-million-barrel amount after reviewing evidence presented in October 2013 in the civil trial over the spill, according to reports from the website of nola.com.

The U.S. government insisted on a spill of 4.19 million barrels of oil while the BP just reported a spill of 2.45 million barrels following the Macondo well blowout in April 2010.

The federal magistrate's ruling, which narrows the range of the penalty the BP will ultimately pay, means BP now faces up to 13.7 billion U.S. dollars in pollution fines for the spill.

Under the U.S. Clean Water Act, oil spill violators face fines ranging from 1,000 to 4,300 dollars per barrel of oil spilled, the ruling now caps the maximum penalty at 13.7 billion dollars.

A U.S. Justice Department spokesman reportedly said that federal prosecutors were reviewing the the judge's decision. The BP also said that the company was continuing to review the decision, but maintains its penalty should fall on the lower end of the range.

On April 20, 2010, the BP's Deepwater Horizon drill platform caught fire and exploded, killing 11 workers and triggering one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history.

In January 2013, the BP pleaded guilty to 14 criminal counts for the 2010 oil disaster and agreed to pay 4 billion dollars in criminal penalties in a settlement with the Justice Department.

The BP said it has so far paid more than 26 billion dollars in cleanup costs and damage claims to individuals, businesses and governments.

Dozens of lawyers will gather at a New Orleans federal courtroom on Jan. 20 to begin the final leg of arguments over the 2010 oil spill -- its cause, its impact, and, ultimately, its price tag in pollution fines. Endi