I saw several articles about BP being able to limit it’s liability to $75 million. This is from sec.2704 (a)(3) of OPA 90, stating that liability will not exceed “for an [B]offshore facility[/B] except a deepwater port, the total of all removal costs plus $75,000,000;”
The oil spilling into the gulf is coming from the ocean floor, or well, or pipeline.
Since I first saw the $75 million limitation mentioned I’ve been thinking, how does OPA 90 apply to oil that is not spilling from a ship or offshore facility?
If the oil is coming from the pipeline, this is included in the definition of “Facility”. But if the oil is coming from something other than the pipeline, like the ocean floor, orthe casing, or the riser (I don’t know all the technical details), OPA 90 [B]may[/B] not apply.
Actually, if [B]any[/B] of the oil is not leaking from the “facility”, it could be argued that the limitation of liability does not apply. This could make for an interesting fight in the courts.