[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 201 (Wednesday, October 19, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 60853-60854]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-20935]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Consent Decree Under the Clean Air Act

    Under 28 CFR 50.7, notice is hereby given that on October 11, 2005, 
a Consent Decree in United States et al. v. Exxon Mobil Corporation and 
ExxonMobil Oil Corporation, Civil Action No. O5-C-5809, was lodged with 
the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
    In a complaint that was filed simultaneously with the Consent 
Decree, the United States, the State of Illinois, the State of 
Louisiana, and the State of Montana sought injunctive relief and 
penalties against Exxon Mobil Corporation and ExxonMobil Oil 
Corporation (``ExxonMobil'') pursuant to Sections 113(b) and 304(a) of 
the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. 7413(b) and 7604(a), for alleged Clean Air 
Act violations and violations of the corollary provisions in state laws 
at ExxonMobil petroleum refineries in Baton Rouge,

[[Page 60854]]

Louisiana; Baytown, Texas; Beaumont, Texas; Billings, Montana; Joliet, 
Illinois, and Torrance, California. The complaint also asserted claims 
for violation of certain other environmental laws at some of the 
refineries, including: (1) Claims under Section 3008 of the Resource 
Conservation and Recovery Act, 42 U.S.C. 6928, and Section 309 of the 
Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1319, at the Billings and Joliet Refineries; 
and (2) claims for violation of release reporting requirements under 
Section 103 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, 
and Liability Act, 42 U.S.C. Sec.  9603, and Section 304 of the 
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, 42 U.S.C. 11004.
    Under the settlement, ExxonMobil will implement innovative 
pollution control technologies to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides, 
sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter from refinery process units. 
ExxonMobil also will adopt facility-wide enhanced benzene waste 
monitoring and fugitive emission control programs. In addition, 
ExxonMobil will pay a $7.7 million civil penalty for settlement of the 
claims in the complaint. Finally, ExxonMobil will undertake $6.7 
million in federal and state environmentally-beneficial projects, 
including: (1) Retrofitting or replacing municipal bus fleets in 
communities near the Baytown, Beaumont, Billings, Joliet, and Torrance 
Refineries to reduce air emissions from those vehicles, at a cost of at 
least $1,300,000; (2) donating land containing unique prairie habitat 
and performing habitat restoration benefitting the Midewin Tallgrass 
Prairie near the Joliet Refinery, at a cost of at least $1,050,000; (3) 
providing emergency response equipment to the Will County Emergency 
Management Agency, which serves the area near the Joliet Refinery, at a 
cost of at least $100,000; (4) performing three different emission 
reduction projects at the Baytown, Billings, and Joliet Refineries, at 
a total cost of at least $2,550,000; and (5) providing $1,700,000 for 
acquisition and protection of coastal lands in the State of Louisiana.
    The Department of Justice will receive comments relating to the 
Consent Decree for a period of thirty (30) days from the date of this 
publication. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant Attorney 
General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, P.O. Box 7611, 
U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC 20044-7611, and should refer 
to United States et al. v. Exxon Mobil Corporation and ExxonMobil Oil 
Corporation, D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-2-1-07030.
    The Consent Decree may be examined at the Office of the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency, Region 5, 77 W. Jackson Boulevard, 
Chicago, Illinois, During the public comment period, the Consent Decree 
may also be examined on the following Department of Justice Web site, 
http://www.usdoj.gov/enrd/open.html. A copy of the Consent Decree may 
also be obtained by mail from the Consent Decree Library, P.O. Box 
7611, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC 20044-7611 or by 
faxing or e-mailing a request to Tonia Fleetwood 
([email protected], fax number (202) 514-0097, phone 
confirmation number (202) 514-1547. In requesting a copy from the 
Consent Decree Library, please enclose a check in the amount of $69.25 
(25 cents per page reproduction cost) payable to the U.S. Treasury.

Robert D. Brook,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 05-20935 Filed 10-18-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-M