JUNEAU, Alaska, Nov. 29 (UPI) -- The U.S. government claims BP violated its probation in a 2009 oil spill from the Prudhoe Bay field near Alaska's North Slope.
BP in 2007 pleaded guilty to a Clean Water Act violation stemming from a 5,700-barrel spill from the Prudhoe Bay field the previous year. The U.S. government claims the company violated its probation when about 380 barrels spilled in the same area in 2009.
BP spokesman Steve Rinehart told Bloomberg News the 2009 spill was an unfortunate accident.
"No one was hurt and there was minimal environmental impact," he was quoted as saying.
Federal lawyers, in a mid-November filing, said the 2009 spill "vividly demonstrates" that BP wasn't serious about safety in its Alaska operations. That spill, the government said, was "predictable and preventable."
BP, however, said the 2009 spill came from a pipeline that had performed "flawlessly" in the past.
"Contrary to the government's claims, the conditions that led to this spill had never previously been encountered on the North Slope," the company said in a statement.
BP also faces legal hurdles stemming from last year's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
