On December 23, 1994, the United States (on behalf of NOAA, U.S. Department of
the Interior (DOI), the Department of Transportation and the National Pollution
Fund), the Washington Department of Ecology and the Makah Indian Tribe entered
into a settlement with the Maruha Corporation and
the Japan Ship Owners' Mutual Protection and Indemnity Assn. (the owners and
the insurers of the TENYO MARU), Tianjin Ocean Shipping Co., the China Ocean
Shipping Co. and the United Kingdom Mutual Steam Ship Assurance Assn. (Bermuda)
Ltd. (the owners, the operators and the insurers of the TUO HAI). The agreement
covered claims by the United States, the State of Washington and the Makah
Indian Tribe for oil removal costs, natural resource damages and civil
penalties arising from the oil spill.
Under the settlement, the companies agreed to pay a total of $9 million (over
and above approximately $2.4 million in removal costs previously paid). Of the
total paid, $500,000 went to pay a civil penalty assessed by the U.S. Coast
Guard to the Maruha Corporation, $3,000,000 went to reimburse oil removal
costs, $340,028 was paid to reimburse damage assessment costs incurred by the
Trustees, and the balance ($5,159,972 plus interest) was allocated solely for
the purpose of restoring, rehabilitating, replacing or acquiring the equivalent
of injured natural resources.