"Exxon challenging $1.7M penalty for Yellowstone River pipeline break"

"BILLINGS, Mont. -- Representatives of Exxon Mobil Corp. appeared at before federal regulators Wednesday to contest $1.7 million in proposed civil penalties over a Montana oil spill.

The penalties stem from a 2011 pipeline break that spilled an estimated 63,000 gallons of oil into the Yellowstone River near Laurel.

Federal regulators charged in March that Exxon failed to take sufficient steps to protect its 12-inch Silvertip pipeline against erosion caused by flooding. They also said the company did not close an upstream safety valve quickly enough, making the spill much worse."

The Associated Press had the story July 17, 2013. [2]