ExxonMobil subsidiary ordered to pay more than $6m for 2006 oil spill

By Milton J. Valencia, Globe Staff

A subsidiary of ExxonMobil Corp. was ordered to pay more than $6 million in penalties for the 2006 spill of 15,000 gallons of diesel oil into the Mystic River from its oil terminal in Everett.

The penalties against ExxonMobil Pipeline Co. were for criminal violations of the federal Clean Water Act, the United States Attorney’s office in Boston said.

The company must reimburse $179,634 in cleanup costs; pay a fine of double that amount, or $359,018; pay $1 million to the Massachusetts Environmental Trust to improve water quality in the Mystic River; and pay $4,640,982 to the North American Wetlands Conservation Act.

The company pleaded guilty last year to charges that it neglected maintenance of its marine oil terminal in Everett, which is at the confluence of the Mystic River and Island End River.

The lack of maintenance resulted in the failure of a safety valve that resulted in pressure buildups in the oil distribution pipes. Eventually, more than 12,000 gallons of low-sulfur diesel and 2,500 gallons of kerosene spilled into the Mystic River.

Moreover, the company was cited for failing to realize the oil spill had occurred until the Coast Guard responded hours later, after noticing the oil spill in the water.