East Bay Petroleum Firm To Pay $3 Million In Enviromental Suit
CONTRA COSTA COUNTY (KCBS) - A major petroleum distributor in the Bay Area has been ordered to pay $3 million in fines as part of a court settlement stemming from a civil environmental lawsuit.
More than a dozen district attorneys and the state attorneys general said Contra Costa-based Golden Gate Petroleum Corporation violated a number of laws involving underground storage tank systems.
KCBS' Dave Padilla:
Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Tina Nunes Ober said the suit, which was filed in November 2007, was not about leaking toxic materials into the ground or water.
"There wasn't any evidence there was any release. There were a lot of issues with sensors not being in the proper place," said Ober.
Ober said there's a permanent injunction in place which requires the company to follow the law.
"They had already made some corrections before the case settled and they're just required to comply with all the laws involving underground storage tanks," she said.
A spokesperson for Golden Gate Petroleum Corporation could not be reached for comment.
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