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Case: Equinox, LA
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Date of incident: September 28, 1998.
Location: Lake Grand Ecaille, Louisiana.
Trustees:
Case status: Case settled January 6, 2006. Restoration
implementation phase.
Overview: An estimated 450 barrels to 1,500 barrels of
oil, similar to a medium weight crude oil, was discharged into the waters of
Lake Grande Ecaille, in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana during a blowout of a
well operated by Equinox Oil Co, Inc. Several thousand acres of surface water
in Lake Grande Ecaille, as well as the Gulf of Mexico, were covered by slicks
or sheens from the incident, and approximately 1,233 acres of wetlands were
exposed to oil.
State and federal natural resource trustees conducted a natural resource damage
assessment (NRDA) related to the well blowout and subsequent oil spill.
The purpose of the NRDA was to assess potential injuries to natural resources
and restore these resources on behalf of the public. The impacted water body is
located in southeastern Barataria Bay and supports recreational and commercial
fishing, petrochemical facilities, and brackish to saline marshes.
Injuries to the water, sediment, wildlife, and wetlands were assessed using
field observations and modeling. Only a small fraction of the 1,200 acres of
wetlands impacted by the spill was severely injured. The injury assessment
resulted in the calculated loss of 33.8 discount acre-years of marsh service,
representing the total expected injury to marsh, sediment, wildlife, and water
column. A Settlement Agreement was filed on January 5, 2006, between the
trustees and Elysium, who purchased the oil field in 2000. The case was settled
for $1.2M as compensation for assessment, administrative, and restoration costs
related to the spill. The final Restoration Plan and Environmental Assessment
was released November 20, 2005.
The preferred restoration alternative includes the re-establishment of 3.5 to 4
acres of marsh and the enhancement/nourishment of 8.4 acres of marsh.
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