unitex@rubbs.fidonet.org (unitex) (10/06/89)
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To: arisia.xerox.com!conf:en.energy, arisia.xerox.com!conf:sci.environment,
/* Written 1:39 am Oct 3, 1989 by econet in cdp:sc.natlnews */
/* ---------- "--Exxon Quits Alaska Cleanup " ---------- */
Exxon Quits Alaska Cleanup-- Environmentalists File Suit
Just weeks before Exxon's scheduled pullout from cleanup efforts
in Alaska's oil- smeared Prince William Sound, nine environmental
groups, including the Sierra Club, slapped the oil giant with a
lawsuit August 23 to force the company to fully clean up and
restore the oil-damaged ecosystem.
Exxon's last day for cleanup activities was September 15, and it
has not made clear its intentions for continuing the work next
spring, other than conducting a survey of the situation. The
lawsuit, filed in federal court in Anchorage against Exxon and the
Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., attacks the efficacy and adequacy of
Exxon's cleanup efforts, as well as its plans for minimal
cleanup-related activities this winter.
"Exxon keeps reassuring the public that the cleanup effort is
going well, that all beaches will be cleaned up soon, that the
ravages to wildlife are almost over, that things are well in
hand," says Buck Parker of the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund,
which is representing the nine plaintiffs. "They're not. Exxon's
cleanup efforts have proven largely ineffective, and it has
vacillated on a commitment to further cleanup next spring. We want
the court to make it absolutely clear that Exxon will be
responsible for cleaning up its mess until the area is fully
restored."
The lawsuit alleges that Exxon is violating both the Clean Water
Act and the Resource Conservation & Recovery Act, and seeks
immediate action to minimize the ongoing damage from the oil
spill, the largest ever in the U.S. The environmental groups are
pressing for Exxon to expand its cleanup activities this winter,
as weather permits; to prepare a thorough, public evaluation of
all cleanup techniques that have been tried (there is some
contention over whether some methods employed -- such as high-
pressure, hot water washing of shorelines -- have done more harm
than good); to develop a plan for the complete cleanup of the
area; and to choose cleanup techniques that promote restoration,
including the cleanup of weathered and subsurface oil.
In the six months since the Exxon Valdez ruptured on the rocks of
Bligh Reef, Exxon has treated less than half of the 1000 miles of
oiled shoreline. Of these treated areas, none are close to being
completely cleaned; in many instances, beaches have suffered a
second or third wave of oil, and much of it has soaked into beach
sediments. Already more than 34,000 birds have died, and thousands
of migrating birds will likely die as a result of contact with the
contaminated environment in the weeks ahead, according to
scientists. The Exxon cleanup is ending just as bird migration is
peaking.
The nine plaintiff organizations are the Sierra Club, Prince
William Sound Conservation, Alaska Center for the Environment,
Northern Alaska Environmental Center, Natural Resources Defense
Council, National Audubon Society, Defenders of Wildlife, Trustees
for Alaska, and Greenpeace.
Contact: Buck Parker, (415) 567-6100; Lauri Adams, Alaska Office,
Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, (907) 586-2751
---
Patt Haring | United Nations | FAX: 212-787-1726
patth@sci.ccny.cuny.edu | Information | BBS: 201-795-0733
patth@ccnysci.BITNET | Transfer Exchange | (3/12/24/9600 Baud)
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