By Greentech Lead Team: The ExxonMobil oil company has
been fined £2.8 million for failing to report greenhouse gas emissions from its
chemical plant in Scotland. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency fined
the company in 2010-11 for not reporting 33,000 tons of carbon dioxide
emissions from its Mossmorran ethylene plant in Fife.
It is the largest fine for an environmental offence in
British history, according to a media report.
EU laws place strict rules on companies for accurately
reporting emissions, with 100-euro fines (83 pound) for every ton they miss.
The money from the fine has been passed to the Scottish
Government to fund environmental projects.
Four other companies have also been penalized for
underestimating greenhouse gas emissions from plants in Scotland: Dow Chemical
Company (Grangemouth), Tennent Caledonian (Glasgow), Pernod Ricard (Glasgow)
and FMC BioPolymer (Girvan).
“The whole point of the European trading scheme is
to limit the total climate pollution coming from industry. So it is quite right
that fines should be high for those who fail to comply,” said WWF Scotland
director Richard Dixon.
“This massive failure to accurately report is just
the latest in a long, sorry tale of complacency by the oil industry. We need
up-to-date, accurate reporting if we are to protect our environment and crack
down on those contributing to climate change,” said Scottish Green party
co-leader Patrick Harvie.