Judge Rules on Size of Macondo Spill

摘要

US District Judge Carl Barbier has ruled that 3.19 million barrels of oil spilled during the 2010 Macondo disaster —less than the 4.1 million claimed by the federal government and more than the 2.4 million barrels BP estimates. By setting the number, Barbier has now capped how much BP can be fined for the spill. Because Barbier had previously ruled BP was "grossly negligent' in the accident, the company can be fined up to $4,300 per barrel. Using Barbier's number, the maximum fine BP could now face is $13.7 billion. The third part of the civil trial will get under way Tuesday after a series of pre-trial briefings and meetings last week.