Oil Pollution Act

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The Oil Pollution Act is a U.S. federal law that strengthens regulations and liability for oil spill prevention, response, and cleanup in American waters and shorelines.

Aliases (1)

Statements (47)
Predicate Object
instanceOf United States federal statute
administeredBy Department of the Interior
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
United States Coast Guard
United States Environmental Protection Agency
amends Clean Water Act
appliesTo offshore facilities
onshore facilities
pipelines transporting oil
tank vessels
authorizes federal removal actions for oil discharges
natural resource damage assessments
category Environmental law in the United States
Oil spill prevention and response law
United States federal environmental legislation
country United States
creates Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund
dateSigned 1990-08-18
designates federal on-scene coordinator for oil spill response
enactedBy 101st United States Congress
establishes liability for economic damages from oil spills
liability for natural resource damages from oil spills
liability for oil spill removal costs
imposes strict liability on responsible parties for oil spills
jurisdiction United States federal government
primaryPurpose oil spill cleanup
oil spill prevention
oil spill response
protects adjoining shorelines from oil pollution
exclusive economic zone of the United States from oil pollution
navigable waters of the United States from oil pollution
publicLawNumber Public Law 101-380
regulates oil pollution in navigable waters of the United States
oil pollution on adjoining shorelines of the United States
requires contingency planning for oil spill response
financial responsibility for certain facilities handling oil
financial responsibility for vessels carrying oil
oil spill response plans for certain onshore facilities
oil spill response plans for certain vessels
responseTo Exxon Valdez oil spill
setsLiabilityCap statutory limits for certain oil spill damages
shortName OPA
Oil Pollution Act
signedBy George H. W. Bush
strengthens federal authority over oil spill response
penalties for oil pollution violations
yearEnacted 1990


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