TARRYTOWN, New York - February 8 - Today, New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo initiated a legal action against ExxonMobil and four other companies to force a cleanup of the massive 17-million gallon Greenpoint Oil Spill in Brooklyn and to restore the damage done to Newtown Creek. The suit takes aim at the decades-old spill, which has spread under 55 acres of commercial and residential Greenpoint, threatening hundreds of homes and businesses, destroying groundwater and soils, and severely damaging Newtown Creek.

"ExxonMobil's days of treating Greenpoint like a dumping ground are numbered," said Riverkeeper President Alex Matthiessen. "Riverkeeper applauds Attorney General Cuomo for initiating this legal action. We look forward to working with the state to bring these companies to justice."

Riverkeeper has been leading the fight to clean up Newtown Creek since 2002. In 2004, the organization filed a federal case against ExxonMobil and began collaborating with the Office of the Attorney General. Attorney General Cuomo's filing represents a dramatic turning point in the progress of this landmark case.

The Attorney General sent ExxonMobil, BP, Chevron, Keyspan, and Phelps Dodge Notices of Intent to Sue under the federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), charging the companies with creating an "imminent and substantial endangerment to health and the environment" in Newtown Creek and portions of the adjacent shoreline. In addition, Notices of Intent to Sue were sent to ExxonMobil and Chevron for violating the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) by discharging pollutants into Newtown Creek without a permit.

After the notice periods expire, the state will file a federal case in the Eastern District of New York unless the violations are remedied. The state would also assert claims under Superfund, the Oil Pollution Act, the state Navigation Law, the state Environmental Conservation Law, and public nuisance. The suit will seek testing and scientific investigation, a more aggressive recovery system, cleanup of contaminated groundwater and soil, restoration of Newtown Creek, damages to natural resources, and financial penalties.

Riverkeeper's 2004 federal case against ExxonMobil was similarly filed under the CWA and RCRA. That case similarly seeks an aggressive remediation system, the protection of human health and the environment, and penalties. Riverkeeper's case is in the discovery phase of litigation before Judge Amon and Magistrate Judge Levy in the Federal Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Co-plaintiffs in Riverkeeper's case include local residents Teresa Toro, Rolf Carle, Mike and Laura Hoffmann, and Bill Schuck and elected officials Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz, Councilmember David Yassky, and Councilmember Eric Gioia. State Senator Martin Dilan and Assemblyman Vito Lopez joined the group on a new January 2007 notice of intent to sue. The law students of the Pace Environmental Litigation Clinic, supervised by Professor Daniel Estrin, Esq., represent coplaintiffs Riverkeeper and residents. Matthew Brinckerhoff of the firm Emery Celli Brinckerhoff & Abady represents the elected officials co-plaintiffs.

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