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The Top Three Reasons for Filing a Montana Pipeline Lawsuit
If you are considering filing a Montana pipeline lawsuit against ExxonMobil, the oil company that placed a pipeline to transport crude oil from Silver Tip to Billings for refining, chances are you have experienced either sickness, loss of income, or property damage from the July 1st pipeline rupture.
There are many ways that a crude oil spill harms the environment, economy and communities where the spill occurred, but we will focus on three major complaints that have led victims of oil spills to pursue compensation in the past. Until oil companies become more vigilant about the placement and safety of their pipelines, residents will continue to file lawsuits when their homes, jobs, and lives are put in danger.
Weitz & Luxenberg environmental attorney Robin Greenwald is on the highly selective steering committee for lawyers representing the people of the Gulf Coast against BP. She is a strong advocate for the people and businesses harmed by oil companies. Ms. Greenwald and our other environmental attorneys can help you protect yourself from the fates that befall too many in communities with oil pipelines running through them.
#1 reason for filing a Montana pipeline lawsuit: sickness
A person does not file a Montana pipeline lawsuit because oil is easy to live with or safe to inhale. Valuable as crude oil may be economically, it is toxic to animals, and that includes humans. Recent news reports have shared stories of Laurel residents who had to leave their homes because they were sickened by the fumes.
The Associated Press reports that some Montana residents have reported symptoms ranging from shortness of breath to fainting spells linked to exposure to petroleum-based chemicals.(1) Other long-term dangers from exposure to petroleum include
- Peripheral neuropathy:damage to the nerves of the peripheral nervous system causing numbness, tingling, and loss of coordination.
- If pregnant women exposed to petroleum-based compounds, the developing fetus is at risk of physical deformities, slowed growth, and developmental delays.
- Cancer: the International Agency for Research on Cancer lists the petroleum compound benzene as a human carcinogen. (2)
- Circulatory and respiratory damage.
#2 reason for filing a Montana pipeline lawsuit: loss of income
For commercial fisheries, filing a Montana pipeline lawsuit may be the only way to recover from financial losses caused by the oil spill. A spokesman for the Montana chapter of Trout Unlimited told reporters that if another surge of water pushes oil further into back channels as expected, it could be a potential threat to fisheries due to the roe and young fish in back channels. (1)
Trout are not the only native fish at risk from oil spread by flood-swollen waters. The AP reportst that “the stretch of the Yellowstone where the spill occurred contains sauger, bass catfish, goldeye, trout and, farther downstream, below Miles City, native pallid sturgeon.” (1)
Though Governor Brian Schweitzer vowed that he would not allow the oil spill to affect the state's $400-million trout industry, the floods may be stronger than rescue workers and cleanup crews' best efforts to keep oil out of the coldwater fisheries and pristine watersheds of the Yellostone. (3)
#3 reason for filing a Montana pipeline lawsuit: property damage
One goat rancher reported that “in places where the water has gone down the soil is shiny, there's residue oil and you can see where the grass is already dying.” For livestock owners, poisoned grass and water mean poisoned animals. If your cattle or goats cannot eat your grass, where can they eat? Farmers and ranchers with land near the river face loss of income and property damage.
Whether or not animals are involved, an oil spill damages property. One family had to evacuate their home, located a few miles downriver of the burst pipeline, because of the nauseating fumes from the oil carried onto their property by flood waters. (4) Another homeowner reported that he has been living with the fumes for five days, and “the only way [he] can breathe is to have all the windows open.” (5)
As anyone living near a landfill or environmental disaster can tell you, odors and pollution damage property values as well as property. You do not have to suffer these losses simply because you live near a crude oil pipeline. You have legal options.
Contact Weitz & Luxenberg for more information about Montana pipeline lawsuits
Call us at 1-800-476-6070 or fill out a form on this site for a free legal consultation. We have experience helping many different communities recover from oil spills and environmental disasters, and we can help you.
Acknowledgments:
1. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43634546/ns/us_news-environment/
2. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxguides/toxguide-3.pdf?id=39&tid=14
3. http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-oil-spill
-yellowstone-20110704,0,1377467.story
see also:
Yellowstone River Oil Spill
Yellowstone River Oil Spill? We han help you file an Exxon lawsuit.Did the Yellowstone River Oil Spill destroy your property and expose you to toxic chemicals? File a lawsuit today!
The Aftermath
Have you suffered from the effects of the pipeline rupture in Laurel, Montana? Information for you.The burst Exxon Pipeline did more than pollute the Yellowstone. It caused devastating effects on the local economy of Laurel, Montana. We can help you file a case.
Montana Oil Spill
The Exxon Montana Oil Spill of 2011: a Fourth of July disasterMontana Oil Spill: The Exxon Pipeline Rupture Spilled 1000 barrels of oil into the Yellowstone River. Weitz & Luxenberg can help.
