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WASHINGTON, DC - The United States has filed suit to recover more than $7 million in pollution cleanup and response costs spent by the government to stop a spill and to clean up oil discharged into the sensitive marine environment off the coast of Oregon in 1999, the Justice Department announced today.

On February 4, 1999, the M/V New Carissa, a Panamanian registered freighter, anchored extremely close to the Oregon shore. The vessel ran aground north of the entrance to Coos Bay, Oregon and broke in half, ultimately spilling approximately 70,000 gallons of bunker fuel, a petroleum by-product used in a number of products, such as marine fuels, and 37,400 gallons of diesel oil.

Earlier this year, the ship's owner, operator and insurer filed a suit alleging government negligence caused the vessel to run aground and asked that the plaintiffs not be held liable for the oil spill. The United States in its filings today denied these claims and, at the same time, filed its counterclaims and a third-party complaint for over $7 million against various parties, including the ship's corporate owner, operator, and its captain.

The United States, the state of Oregon, and two local Indian tribes are still assessing the extent of environmental damages caused by the oil spill. These damages are not presently included in the monies sought in today's suit by the United States and may be filed at a later time.

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