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German Shipping Firm Falsifies Records to Dump Toxic Waste
A German shipping company has been charged with violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships by failing to maintain accurate records about the disposal of oil-contaminated waste.
According to federal investigators, MST MINERALIEN SCHIFFAHRT SPEDITION UND TRANSPORT GMBH, the operator of the M/V Cornelia, instructed crew members to transfer machinery space bilge water from the dirty bilge tank to the clean bilge tank, which is supposed to contain only clean, oil-free water, and then discharge the oily waste-water overboard at least ten occasions during a nine-month period.
At least one occasion when machinery space bilge water was transferred to the clean bilge tank and then discharged overboard occurred in approximately May 2015 while the ship was in the Great Lakes.
U.S. Attorney Andrew M. Luger announced the indictment, charging MST MINERALIEN SCHIFFAHRT SPEDITION UND TRANSPORT GMBH with one count of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships and eight counts of false entries/omissions in records in a federal investigation.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin F. Langner and John Kokkinen.
The indictment alleges that the Chief Engineer intentionally failed to record the transfers and subsequent discharges of oily waste-water in the M/V Cornelia’s Oil Record Book (ORB), giving the false impression that all of the oily waste-water had been properly handled and disposed.
On November 3, 2015, the M/V Cornelia called upon the Port of Duluth to load grain for transport to Africa, and U.S. Coast Guard inspectors boarded the vessel to conduct a Port State Control examination, at which time they were presented with the M/V Cornelia’s ORB containing the omissions and false entries.
Key Facts
- State: Minnesota
- Category: Environmental Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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