Decades after spill, Exxon Valdez case back in court

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (Reuters)—More than two decades after the Exxon Valdez supertanker struck a reef in Alaska and unleashed the nation's biggest tanker spill, a lingering legal dispute over the disaster heads back to court Friday.

At issue in a U.S. District Court hearing in Anchorage, Alaska, is an unpaid $92 million claim by the U.S. Justice Department and the state of Alaska for what they consider long-term environmental damage that was not expected at the time of the spill.

The claim was made five years ago under a "reopener" provision of the governments' 1991 civil settlement with Exxon, in which the oil company paid $900 million.

That money was paid over a decade into a trust account that funds environmental restoration projects and scientific work. But continuing environmental impact prompted the federal and state governments to present the reopener bill to Exxon Mobil, Exxon Corp.'s successor.

They said the money should go to projects to address unforeseen damages, including surprising amounts of oil lingering on Prince William Sound beaches. Exxon has not paid the bill, and the federal and state governments have yet to take the matter to court.

Now an Alaska environmentalist wants to persuade a federal judge to compel Exxon to pay the $92 million, plus another $23 million in interest.

At stake is more than money to help clean up damage from the spill of 11 million gallons in 1989, said Rick Steiner, the retired University of Alaska professor and longtime activist who filed the motion.

He argues the outcome will set a precedent for a potential legal settlement over the BP P.L.C. Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico last year and any other environmental disaster with long-term but unknown consequences.

"If this reopener is not paid here and won't be, then how in good conscience can the governments and the public and the courts settle the case down in the Gulf using a similar reopener provision?" Mr. Steiner said.

The state and federal governments have not responded to Mr. Steiner's efforts with any court documents related to his motion. But one former Alaska governor, Republican Frank Murkowski, sent a letter to the court supporting Mr. Steiner.

"Alaska deserves closure on this issue after 22 years," Mr. Murkowski, whose administration made the reopener claim, said in his letter.

Exxon argued in a motion filed last week that it should not pay anything more for the Valdez disaster. No long-term impacts have been serious or surprising, so no payment for unforeseen damages is justified, it argued.

"In fact, the more than 20 years of intensive scrutiny of the Prince William Sound ecosystem by hundreds of scientists confirm that Prince William Sound and the oil spill area are in good ecological shape," the company said.

Exxon says it has already spent $4.3 billion as a consequence of the spill, including cleanup costs and various legal settlements, court verdicts and criminal fines.