Colonial Oil, Clean Air Act Violations, Georgia 2023

Colonial Oil Industries Inc., a leading player in the oil industry, has been slammed with a $2.8 million penalty for its egregious failure to meet Clean Air Act regulations. The company’s blatant disregard for environmental laws has finally caught up with it, and the public is breathing a sigh of relief.

The Justice Department and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reached a settlement with Colonial Oil, which will require the company to shell out a whopping $2.8 million in civil penalties. But that’s not all – Colonial Oil will also have to spend an estimated $12.2 million to offset the detrimental human health and environmental impacts of its actions. The estimated $12.2 million in spending is expected to result in over 18,300 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent reductions, which is equivalent to powering 2,386 homes’ energy use or 4,355 gasoline cars for a year.

The company’s alleged failure to meet obligations under the Clean Air Act’s Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program and gasoline volatility standards between 2013 and 2019 has finally been exposed. Colonial Oil allegedly excluded certain fuel it supplied to marine vessels from its renewable volume obligations calculations, resulting in less renewable fuel being used in lieu of gasoline and diesel fuel. This led to increased greenhouse gas emissions, causing harm to the environment and human health.

“The creation and use of renewable fuels reduces overall greenhouse gas emissions,” said Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This proposed settlement will hold Colonial to the same renewable fuel requirements that all importers and producers must adhere to.”

Colonial Oil also sold over a million gallons of gasoline that failed to meet the applicable volatility standard, which is intended to reduce evaporative emissions during the summer season and protect public health. The company’s actions have finally been called out, and it’s time for them to take responsibility for their crimes.

The proposed settlement, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. Information on submitting comments is available on the Justice Department’s website: www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees.

In mandatory facts, the defendant is: Colonial Oil Industries Inc., the exact criminal charges are failure to meet Clean Air Act regulations, the city and state are Savannah, Georgia, the exact date of the crime is between 2013 and 2019, and the outcome is a $2.8 million penalty and an estimated $12.2 million in spending to offset the detrimental human health and environmental impacts. The dollar amounts where applicable are $2.8 million and $12.2 million.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/archives/opa/pr/colonial-oil-pay-28-million-penalty-failure-meet-clean-air-act-fuels-regulations