Waco Oil and Gas to pay $825K fine to restore West Virginia creeks and wetlands - WBOY.com
Waco Oil and Gas to pay $825K fine to restore West Virginia creeks and wetlands
SUTTON, W.Va. (WBOY) — Waco Oil and Gas Co. Inc. has agreed to pay a $825,000 penalty to restore the “vast majority” of Braxton County waters impacted by unauthorized discharges of dredged or fill material, in violation of the Clean Water Act and West Virginia state law.
The U.S. Department of Justice said a proposed consent decree was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, and the company also agreed to place a deed restriction on its property to protect the restored waters in perpetuity.
Waco Oil and Gas was accused of discharging the material into tributaries of Cunningham Fork and tributaries of Bear Run and adjacent wetlands without the required federal or state permits starting in 2017, according to the DOJ.
The next step is for the consent decree to be lodged with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia in the Federal Register. Once the notice is published, there will be a 30-day public comment period.
The DOJ’s website has the full consent decree available, and once the public comment period is scheduled, the dates will be available on the DOJ’s website as well.
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
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