The settlement requires QEPFS to pay a $3.65m civil penalty and pay $350,000 into a Clean Air Trust Fund to be established by the tribal member intervenors.
QEPFS is also required to reduce its emissions by removing certain equipment, installing additional pollution controls, and replacing the natural gas powered instrument control systems with compressed air control systems.
EPA Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance assistant administrator Cynthia Giles said, "Today’s settlement will bring cleaner air to the members of the Northern Ute Tribe by ensuring natural gas compressor stations are operated in compliance with the law and by creating a trust to fund environmental projects on the Uintah and Ouray Reservation."
The Department of Justice Environment and Natural Resources Division assistant attorney general Ignacia Moreno said, "This settlement will result in cleaner air for residents living on the Uintah and Ouray reservation and allow the responsible development of energy resources in accordance with the Clean Air Act."
QEPFS’s compressor stations remove water and compress natural gas for transportation through gas pipelines.
The consent decree is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval.
