GILLETTE - Some 14 Wyoming oil and gas companies recently paid a total of $44,000 in penalties to the Environmental Protection Agency for alleged violations of spill prevention rules.

However, the agency withdrew its complaint against AM West Petroleum Inc., a company that the EPA had identified in May 2005 as one of the biggest potential offenders in the statewide enforcement action.

AM West was threatened with $54,900 in penalties for allegations of failure to implement various spill prevention measures for facilities in Crook County. EPA officials said last week that AM West made several corrective actions which compelled them to withdraw the complaint.

But AM West owner Bob Davis disputes the EPA's account and said the complaint was withdrawn because he had successfully disputed each allegation. Davis said he was the victim of an overzealous federal agency desperately trying to justify its spill prevention program.

"Every one of these allegations is wrong," said Davis, a former EPA employee. "All this while I felt I was dealing with the mafia."

Davis noted that the EPA based its enforcement actions on inspections that took place in September 2004 and April 2005. The alleged violations against AM West were identified during the first inspection, yet the EPA didn't notify the company until after it had first tipped off media organizations in May 2005 and sent out a press release.

Davis said the stigma of being in trouble with the EPA could have been detrimental to his business. He noted that the EPA didn't send out a press release to the media outlets in Wyoming when it withdrew its complaint against AM West.

"I think this whole thing was a trial by fire," Davis said.

Elizabeth Evans, director of technical enforcement programs at the EPA's Region 8 office, said Davis should have received a call from her staff before media were notified, but wasn't certain if that happened.

Further, Evans said AM West did take corrective actions such as some dirt work, removing a storage tank and filing necessary documentation.

"We think he did a lot of work and should be commended for it," Evans said.

Under the spill prevention program, the EPA requires dikes to contain potential oil and oil-waste spills around various oil field facilities. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service also requires that water treatment ponds be covered with netting or flagging to prevent migratory birds from landing in the water.

Davis said his water treatment ponds were covered with flagging, but he regards the requirement as senseless. He said he purchased a resident game bird license that allows him to conceivably kill 3,052 birds in one year.

Sierra Construction, which is currently working with the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality and Wyoming attorney general's office on a separate set of alleged violations, paid $20,000 in penalties to the EPA, the largest amount of the 14 companies cited.

NewsTracker

* Last we knew: In May 2005, the Environmental Protection Agency Region 8 office announced it was seeking corrective actions and potential penalties against several oil and gas companies in Wyoming for alleged violations of a spill prevention program.

* The latest: All the cases have been settled through corrective action and $44,000 in penalties, and one complaint was withdrawn.

* What's next: The EPA spill prevention inspectors plan to focus on Wyoming again in about another five years.

Energy reporter Dustin Bleizeffer can be reached at (307) 682-3388 or dustin.bleizeffer@casperstartribune.net.