Notice2021-17093
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean Water Act
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
August 11, 2021
Issuing agencies
Justice Department
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 152 (Wednesday, August 11, 2021)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 152 (Wednesday, August 11, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44056-44057]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2021-17093]
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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean
Water Act
On August 5, 2021, the Department of Justice filed a complaint and
lodged a proposed consent decree with the United States District Court
for the District of North Dakota in the lawsuit entitled United States
and North Dakota v. Summit Midstream Partners, LLC and Meadowlark
Midstream Company, LLC, Civil Action No. 1:21-cv-00161. The Department
of the Interior's Fish and Wildlife Service, the North Dakota
Department of Environmental Quality, and the North Dakota Department of
Game and Fish (``Trustees'') are also providing notice of an
opportunity for public comment on a Draft Restoration Plan.
The United States and the State of North Dakota filed this lawsuit
under the Clean Water Act and North Dakota water pollution control
laws. The complaint names Summit Midstream Partners, LLC and Meadowlark
Midstream Company, LLC as defendants. The complaint seeks injunctive
relief, civil penalties, and natural resource damages for violations of
the Clean Water Act and North Dakota law as a result of a produced
water spill from a pipeline owned and operated by Defendants.
Defendants' pipeline discharged more than 700,000 barrels of produced
water between August 2014 and January 2015; produced water from the
spill reached groundwater, a nearby creek, and downstream rivers.
The Consent Decree requires Defendants to perform injunctive
relief; remediate environmental impacts; pay $250,000 in natural
resource damage assessment costs; pay $1,000,000 to be used by the
Trustees for the costs of projects that restore, rehabilitate, replace,
or acquire the equivalent of natural resources; and pay a $20,000,000
civil penalty to be split evenly between the United States and North
Dakota. Based on certain ability to pay limitations, the civil penalty
will be paid over six years, subject to interest. The Consent Decree
resolves the civil claims alleged by the United States and North Dakota
in the complaint. Under the Consent Decree, the United States and North
Dakota also agreed not to sue Defendants for natural resource damages
resulting from the produced water spill.
The Trustees have written a Draft Restoration Plan that describes
proposed alternatives for restoring natural resources and natural
resource services injured by the produced water spill. The preferred
alternatives include three restoration project types: (1) Aquatic
service enhancements; (2) conservation of environmentally sensitive
lands; and (3) recreational access enhancement.
The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on
the Consent Decree and the Draft Restoration Plan. Comments on the
Consent Decree should be addressed to the Assistant Attorney General,
Environment and Natural Resources Division, and should refer to United
States and North Dakota v. Summit Midstream Partners, LLC and
Meadowlark Midstream Company, LLC, D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-2-1-11253. All
comments must be submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the
publication date of this notice. Comments may be submitted either by
email or by mail:
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To submit comments: Send them to:
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By email............................ <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a7d7d2c5c4c8cacac2c9d38ac2c2d489c2c9d5c3e7d2d4c3c8cd89c0c8d1"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="ee9e9b8c8d8183838b809ac38b8b9dc08b809c8aae9b9d8a8184c0898198">[email protected]</span></a>.
By mail............................. Assistant Attorney General,
U.S. DOJ--ENRD,
P.O. Box 7611,
Washington, DC 20044-7611.
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During the public comment period, the Consent Decree may be
examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: <a href="https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees">https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees</a>. We will provide a paper copy of
the Consent Decree upon written request and payment of reproduction
costs. Please mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library,
U.S. DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611.
Please enclose a check or money order for $23.00 (25 cents per page
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury. For a paper
copy without the appendices and signature pages, the cost is $16.25.
Comments on the Draft Restoration Plan may be submitted to the
Trustees, and should refer to Blacktail Creek--Summit Midstream
Pipeline Release Settlement Agreement, DOI Reference #9590. All
comments on the Draft Restoration Plan must be submitted no later than
30 days after the publication date of this notice. Comments on the
Draft Restoration Plan may be submitted either by email or by mail:
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To submit comments: Send them to:
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By email............................ <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#bbfdec8df9d7dad8d0cfdad2d7e4f8c9deded0f5e9fffae9fbddccc895dcd4cd"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="51170667133d30323a2530383d0e122334343a1f03151003113726227f363e27">[email protected]</span></a>.
[[Page 44057]]
By mail............................. Jessica Johnson
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
3425 Miriam Ave.,
Bismarck, ND 58501.
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During the public comment period, a copy of the Draft Restoration
Plan will be available electronically at <a href="https://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/pressrel/archives/index.php">https://www.fws.gov/mountain-prairie/pressrel/archives/index.php</a> and at <a href="https://deq.nd.gov/EHSRulesRegs.aspx">https://deq.nd.gov/EHSRulesRegs.aspx</a>. A link to the Draft Restoration Plan and updates
about it will also be made available on the Listserv of the North
Dakota Department of Environmental Quality (``NDDEQ''). To be placed on
the Listserv, please visit <a href="https://deq.nd.gov/subscriptions/">https://deq.nd.gov/subscriptions/</a> and self-
register, or contact the NDDEQ by phone at (701) 328-5150, or by email
at <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#8eeaebffcee0eaa0e9e1f8"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="bfdbdaceffd1db91d8d0c9">[email protected]</span></a>. A copy of the Draft Restoration Plan may also be
examined at 3425 Miriam Avenue, Bismarck ND 58501. Arrangements to view
the Draft Restoration Plan must be made in advance by contacting (701)
250-4402.
Susan Akers,
Assistant Section Chief,Environmental Enforcement Section,Environment
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2021-17093 Filed 8-10-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P
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