The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) lifted a suspension and proposed debarment and removed the statutory disqualification imposed on Houston-based explorer W&T Offshore, the company announced on 5 August 2014.
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| US EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy. Photo Courtesy of US Department of Interior. |
The action allows W&T Offshore to participate in future federal contracts, including future federal oil and gas leases, assistance activities and federal oil and gas leasing activities.
W&T Offshore said the EPA’s decision is subject to the company’s continued compliance with the conditions of its existing plea agreement – announced in December 2012 – that resolves environmental violations relating to the Ewing Banks 910 platform, located 65mi south of Port Fourchon, Louisiana.
"This decision demonstrates W&T's dedication to compliance and prudent operations in the Gulf of Mexico,” said Tracy W. Krohn, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman. “We take our responsibility to protect the environment and the safety of our employees and contractors very seriously."
In 2009, W&T Offshore said employees for a contractor working for the company on the EW-910 platform violated established protocols for collecting produced water samples before submitting the samples to the laboratory for testing. Later that year, in November 2009, federal government inspectors observed a light, visible sheen on the water around the EW-910 platform, resulting from ongoing platform cleaning efforts.
W&T Offshore agreed to plead guilty to one felony count under the Clean Water Act for altering monthly produced water discharge samples from the EW-910 platform in 2009 and to one misdemeanor count under the Clean Water Act for negligently discharging a small amount of oil from the same platform in November 2009. The plea deal also required W&T Offshore to pay a US$700,000 fine, make a $300,000 community service payment, be placed on a three-year term of probation, and implement an environmental compliance program subject to a third-party audit.
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