Exxon Still Paying for Valdez Spill

Despite the fact that it happened twenty years ago, Exxon is still paying significant sums of money in damages for the Exxon Valdez oil spill that devastated the coast of Alaska, both ecologically and economically. Over $480 million in punitive interest penalties and $70 million in court fees will be paid by the oil giant.
 
This number stands in addition to the $507.5 million that Exxon has already paid in punitive damage awards to those affected by the spill. The decision to pay this amount was made by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in response to a successful Exxon appeal to reduce a $5 billion fee that a jury had agreed upon in 1996.
 
The newest payment will be made as an interest payment on the settlement that was reached previously. That means that over the 13 years that the case has dragged on, a 5.9 percent interest rate has been applied to the $507.5 million that Exxon begun paying out last December.

Cleaning up Exxon Valdez (Image: Flickr)