The Overseas Shipholding Group, Inc (OSG) has pleaded guilty to federal pollution charges in a US court in Texas. A Beaumont federal court judge has ordered the New York-listed tanker owner to pay $3 million in fines for violating pollution laws aboard its 1994-built aframax, the 96,200 dwt Pacific Ruby. OSG was charged with failing to keep accurate oil records in Texan port calls between December 2004 and March 2005, and pleaded guilty to three counts of violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS).
OSG had already been ordered to pay $7 million in fines last year. Both fines were part of a $37 million settlement involving 33 felony counts and 12 OSG vessels.
The settlement with federal prosecutors was reached last year for offences which took place between June 2001 and March 2006 including violations of the Clean Water Act, as amended by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the APPS, conspiracy, false statements, and obstruction of justice.
The violations took place at several US ports including San Francisco, Beaumont, Boston, Portland, and Maine.
In pleading guilty, OSG admitted that it deliberately falsified the Oil Record Book of various ships, made discharges at night, and concealed bypass methods used to circumvent required pollution prevention equipment during US port calls so that the Coast Guard would not discover the criminal activity, reported MarineLog.
OSG had already been ordered to pay $7 million in fines last year. Both fines were part of a $37 million settlement involving 33 felony counts and 12 OSG vessels.
The settlement with federal prosecutors was reached last year for offences which took place between June 2001 and March 2006 including violations of the Clean Water Act, as amended by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the APPS, conspiracy, false statements, and obstruction of justice.
The violations took place at several US ports including San Francisco, Beaumont, Boston, Portland, and Maine.
In pleading guilty, OSG admitted that it deliberately falsified the Oil Record Book of various ships, made discharges at night, and concealed bypass methods used to circumvent required pollution prevention equipment during US port calls so that the Coast Guard would not discover the criminal activity, reported MarineLog.