NY firm settles oil spill dispute

BOSTON, MASS. (AP) - A Melville, N.Y.-based oil transporter and its affiliates will pay more than $6 million to settle part of federal and state damages claims for an oil spill that affected parts of Massachusetts and Rhode Island coastlines.

On April 27, 2003, a Bouchard Transportation Co. Inc. barge struck a rocky ledge at the mouth of Buzzards Bay and spilled 98,000 gallons of oil. It polluted about 100 miles of the New England coastline, killed hundreds of birds and closed nearly 100,000 acres of shellfish beds.

The natural resources damages settlement announced Monday by the U.S. Department of Justice is subject to court approval.

The firm will pay an additional $1.6 million that federal and state governments used to assess environmental damage caused by the spill.

In 2004, the company agreed to pay a $10 million fine stemming from the spill.