766 



(d) Maritime disaster discharges. 



Whenever a marine disaster in or upon the naviga- 

 ble waters of the United States has created a sub- 

 stantial threat of a pollution hazard to the public 

 health or welfare of the United States, including, 

 but not limited to, fi.sh, shellfish, and wildlife and 

 the public and private shorelines and beaches of the 

 United States, because of a discharge, or an im- 

 minent discharge, of large quantities of oil, or of a 

 hazardous substance from a vessel the United States 

 may (A) coordinate and direct all public and private 

 efforts directed at the removal or elimination of such 

 threat; and (B) summarily remove, and, if neces- 

 sary, destroy such vessel by whatever means are 

 available without regard to any provisions of law 

 governing the employment of personnel or the ex- 

 penditure of appropriated funds. Any expense in- 

 curred under this subsection shall be a cost incurred 

 by the United States Government for the purposes 

 of subsection (f ) of this section in the removal of 

 oil or hazardous substance. 



(e) Judicial relief. 



In addition to any other action taken by a State 

 or local government, when the President determines 

 there is an imminent and substantial threat to the 

 public health or welfare of the United States, in- 

 cluding, but not limited to, fish, shellfish, and wild- 

 life and public and private property, shorelines, and 

 beaches within the United States, because of an 

 actual or threatened discharge of oil or hazardous 

 substance into or upon the navigable waters of the 

 United States from an onshore or offshore facility, 

 the President may require the United States attorney 

 of the district in which the threat occurs to secure 

 such relief as may be necessary to abate such threat, 

 and the district courts of the United States shall 

 have jurisdiction to grant such relief as the public 

 interest and the equities of the case may require. 



(f) Liability for actual costs of removal. 



(1) Except where an owner or operator can prove 

 that a discharge was caused solely by (A) an act of 

 God, (B) an act of war, (C) negligence on the part of 

 the United States Government, or (D) an act or 

 omission of a third party without regard to whether 

 any such act or omission was or was not negligent, 

 or any combination of the foregoing clauses, such 

 owner or operator of any vessel from which oil or a 

 hazardous substance is discharged in violation of 

 subsection (b)(3) of this section shall, notwith 

 standing any other provision of law, be liable to the 

 United States Government for the actual costs in- 

 curred under subsection (c) of this section for the 

 removal of such oil or substance by the United States 

 Government in an amount not to exceed $100 per 

 gross ton of such vessel or $14,000,000 whichever is 

 lesser, except that where the United States can show 

 that such discharge was the result of willful negli- 

 gence or willful misconduct within the privity and 

 icnowledge of the owner, such owner or operator shall 

 be liable to the United States Government for the 

 full amount of such costs. Such costs shall constitute 

 a maritime lien on such vessel which may be recov- 

 ered in an action in rem in the district court of the 

 United States for any district within which any ves- 



sel may be found. The United States may also bring 

 an action against the owner or operator of such ves- 

 sel in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover 

 such costs. 



(2> Except where an owner or operator of an on- 

 shore facility can prove that a discharge was caused 

 solely by (A) an act of God, (B) an act of war, (C) 

 negligence on the part of the United States Govern- 

 ment, or (D) an act or omission of a third party 

 without regard to whether any such act or omission 

 was or was not negligent, or any combination of the 

 foregoing clauses, such owner or operator of any 

 such facility from which oil or a hazardous sub- 

 stance is discharged in violation of subsection (h) (3) 

 of this section shall be liable to the United States 

 Government for the actual costs incurred under 

 subsection (c) of this section for the removal of such 

 oil or substance by the United States Government 

 in an amount not to exceed $8,000,000, except that 

 where the United States can show that such dis- 

 charge was the result of willful negligence or willful 

 misconduct within the privity and knowledge of the 

 owner, such owner or operator shall be liable to the 

 United States Government for the full amount of 

 such costs. The United States may bring an action 

 against the owner or operator of such facility in any 

 court of competent jurisdiction to recover such costs. 

 The Administrator is authorized, by regulation, after 

 consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and 

 the Small Business Administration, to establish rea- 

 sonable and equitable classifications of those onshore 

 facilities having a total fixed storage capacity of 

 1 000 barrels or less which he determines because of 

 size, type, and location do not present a substantial 

 ri^k of the discharge of oil or a ha.'^ardous substance 

 in violation of subsection (b> (3) of this section, and 

 apply with respect to such classifications differing 

 limits of liability which may be less than the amount 

 contained in this paragraph. 



(3) Except where an owner or operator of an off- 

 shore facility can prove that a discharge was caused 

 solely by (A) an act of God, (B) an act of war, (C) 

 negligence on the part of the United States Govern- 

 ment, or (D) an act or omission of a third party 

 without regard to whether any such act or omission 

 was or was not negligent, or any combination of the 

 foregoing clauses, such owner or operator of any 

 such facility from which oil or a hazardous substance 

 Is discharged in violation of subsection (b) (3) of 

 this section shaU, notwithstanding any other pro- 

 vision of law, be liable to the United States Govern- 

 ment for the actual costs incurred under subsection 

 (c) of this section for the removal of such oil or 

 substance by the United States Government in an 

 amount not to exceed $8,000,000, except that where 

 the United States can show that such discharge was 

 the result of willful negligence or willful misconduct 

 within the privity and knowledge of the owner, such 

 owner or operator shall be liable to the United States 

 Government for the full amount of such costs. The 

 United States mny bring an action against the owner 

 or operator of such a facility in any court of com- 

 petent jurisdiction to recover such costs. 



(g) Third pirty liability. 

 In any case where an owner or operator of a vessel, 



