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The government awards contracts to companies with histories of misconduct such as contract fraud and environmental, ethics, and labor violations. In the absence of a centralized federal database listing instances of misconduct, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is providing such data. We believe that it will lead to improved contracting decisions and public access to information about how the government spends hundreds of billions of taxpayer money each year on goods and services. Report an instance of misconduct »

BP P.L.C.

North Slope Oil Spills (Federal Lawsuit)

Date: 03/31/2009 (Date of Announcement)

Misconduct Type: Environment

Enforcement Agency: Multiple Agencies

Contracting Party: None

Court Type: Civil

Amount: $0

Disposition: Pending

Synopsis: The U.S. government filed a civil complaint against BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc. (BPXA) – a wholly-owned subsidiary of BP America – alleging that the company violated clean air and water laws. The government accuses BPXA of illegally discharging more than 200,000 gallons of crude oil from its pipelines in Prudhoe Bay onto the North Slope of Alaska during two major oil spills in 2006 and failing to prepare and implement adequate spill prevention measures as required under the Clean Water Act. The complaint also alleges that BPXA violated the Clean Air Act by improperly removing asbestos-containing materials from its pipelines and failed to comply in a timely manner with a corrective action order that the Department of Transportation-Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued to BPXA. The government seeks civil penalties as well as an order for BPXA to take appropriate action to prevent spills in the future.