EPA v. CSTX TRANSPORTATION, INC. (CSX MOUNT CARBON DERAILMENT)

Case summary

On January 3, 2019, Judge Goodwin of the District Court of the Southern District of West Virginia granted DOJ's Unopposed Motion to Enter the Consent Decree and entered the parties? settlement providing for a civil penalty to resolve CSX Transportation's ( CSXT's ) alleged violations of the Clean Water Act ( CWA ), the West Virginia ( WV ) Groundwater Protection Act, and the WV Water Pollution Control Act. The Consent Decree resolves alleged violations that stemmed from the derailment of 27 of CSXT's railcars, each transporting approximately 29,000 gallons of Bakken crude oil, in Mount Carbon, West Virginia on February 16, 2015 and the subsequent discharge of oil from the railcars into the nearby Kanawha River and Armstrong Creek, and their adjoining shorelines (the Derailment ). The Consent Decree requires CSXT to pay penalties of $1.2 million to the U.S. and $1 million to West Virginia for resolution of the alleged state and federal violations. Additionally, the Consent Decree includes a state supplemental environmental project ( state SEP ) requiring CSXT to contribute $500,000 to a state-created and controlled escrow fund to upgrade a water treatment facility in Fayette County, West Virginia. Two mayors of towns located near Mount Carbon and a West Virginia Congressman publicly commented on the then-proposed Consent Decree, requesting that funds be allocated to the towns to reimburse them for resources expended in responding to the Derailment. The Court considered the terms of the settlement as well as the public comments and found that the parties' settlement was not unfair, inadequate, unreasonable, or contrary to the public interest, and therefore entered the Consent Decree. CSXT initiated its payment of $1.2 million to the U.S. on January 3 and it was received on January 4, 2019.

Defendants (1)

• CSXT TRANSPORTATION, INC.Named in complaintNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• CSX MOUNT CARBON DERAILMENT

  WEST VIRGINIA ROUTE 61, MOUNT CARBON, WV, 25139

  Registry ID: 110063865483

Statutes cited

• CWA 311B — Oil & Hazardous Substances Discharge

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• CSTX TRANSPORTATION, INC. (CSX MOUNT CARBON DERAILMENT)entered 2019-01-03

  Primary law: CWA

  Federal penalty: $1,200,000 · State/local: $1,000,000

Timeline (6 milestones)

• 2015-09-23Referred To Dept Of Justice
• 2015-09-24Enforcement Action Data Entered
• 2018-07-23Complaint Filed With Court
• 2018-07-24Final Order Lodged
• 2019-01-03Final Order Entered
• 2022-12-20Enforcement Action Closed