GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.—The Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission has approved disciplinary settlements involving spills from two pits north of Parachute.
The commission on Monday approved a settlement under which Berry Petroleum will pay a $100,000 fine and $73,000 toward a public project in connection with the release of more than 100,000 gallons of fluids above a tributary of Parachute Creek.
It also authorized a settlement in which Marathon will pay more than $143,000 for spilling more than 1 million gallons of what was mostly fresh water in the same area.
Commission staffers told the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel that the actions bring the agency closer to being caught up on enforcement actions, which they acknowledged had fallen too far behind.
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Information from: The Daily Sentinel,
