March 15, 2016

The German shipping companies Briese Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. KG and Briese Schiffahrts GmbH & Co. KG who owned and operated the cargo ship M/V BBC Magellan, pleaded guilty to failure to maintain an accurate oil record book, in violation of the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships and tampering with witnesses by persuading them to provide false statements to the U.S. Coast Guard concerning a bypass hose on the vessel that was being used to discharge oil into the sea.  The companies were sentenced to pay a total of $1.25 million in fines and a $250,000 community service payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to fund projects that enhance coastal habitats of the Gulf of Mexico and bolster priority fish and wildlife populations.  In addition, the ship M/V BBC Magellan is banned from doing business in the United States for the next five years.  DOJ

Tagged in: Environmental Fraud, Ocean Dumping,