Justice Department files suit against BP
Undetermined cleanup costs, penalties sought in Gulf spill
NEW ORLEANS – The Justice Department sued BP and several other companies involved in the Gulf oil spill Wednesday, an opening salvo in the government’s effort to get billions of dollars for untold economic and environmental damage.
The government accuses the companies of disregarding federal safety regulations in drilling the well that blew out April 20 and triggered a deadly explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig. The lawsuit is separate from a Justice Department criminal probe that has not resulted in any charges.
“The department’s focus on investigating this disaster and preventing future (spills) is not over,” Attorney General Eric Holder said during a news conference in Washington. “Both our civil and criminal investigations are ongoing.”
The federal lawsuit filed in New Orleans names BP, rig owner Transocean and other companies involved in the ill-fated drilling project, but not Halliburton – the project’s cement contractor – or the maker of a key cutoff valve that failed. Both could be added later.
The lawsuit makes it possible for the federal government to seek billions of dollars in penalties for polluting the Gulf of Mexico, beaches and wetlands, and reimbursement for its cleanup costs. More than 300 lawsuits filed previously by individuals and businesses, and now consolidated in the New Orleans federal court, include claims for financial losses and compensation for the families of 11 workers killed in the blast.
The suit asks that the companies be held liable without limitation under the Oil Pollution Act for all removal costs and damages caused by the spill, including damages to natural resources. The lawsuit also seeks civil penalties under the Clean Water Act.
The government did not set a dollar figure in the lawsuit, saying the amount of damages and the extent of injuries sustained by the United States are not yet fully known.