In 1967 a major oil field was discovered at Prudhoe Bay in the north of Alaska. Production began in 1977 and by the late 1980s output from this and other Alaskan fields accounted for a quarter of total US production.
To transport the oil from the far north, the trans-Alaska pipeline was built, running 800 miles from Prudhoe Bay to the town of Valdez, the nearest ice-free port. At Valdez, oil was loaded into tanker ships to be transported further south.
On 24 March 1989, the tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground on a reef. A number of factors have been blamed for the accident, including crew fatigue, outdated and malfunctioning navigation equipment, and allegations that the captain was drunk. Whatever the cause, the ship's hull was breached, sending at least 11 million US gallons of oil into the sea and onto nearby beaches.
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The result was one of the worst environmental disasters in maritime history. Large numbers of fish and birds died, with devastating knock-on effects on the Alaskan fishing industry. The US government took action against Exxon for breaching laws against pollution and to recover clean-up costs. On 13 March 1991, Exxon agreed to pay up to $1bn to regulators and the state of Alaska.
This wasn't the end of Exxon's liability. In 2008, it was ordered to pay civil compensation and $507.5m in damages to Alaskan fisherman and fishing firms (reduced from an initial award of $5bn). Delayed interest payments effectively doubled this bill. Experts estimate that the overall costs to the energy giant, including emergency payments and money the company spent on its own clean-up efforts, totalled $3.8bn.
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31 August 1957: the Federation of Malaya declares independence from the UKFeatures On this day in 1957, after ten years of preparation, the Federation of Malaya became an independent nation.
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13 April 1960: the first satellite navigation system is launchedFeatures On this day in 1960, Nasa sent the Transit 1B satellite into orbit to provide positioning for the US Navy’s fleet of Polaris ballistic missile submarines.
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9 April 1838: National Gallery opens in Trafalgar Square
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3 March 1962: British Antarctic Territory is created
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10 March 2000: the dotcom bubble peaks
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9 March 1776: Adam Smith publishes 'The Wealth of Nations'
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8 March 1817: the New York Stock Exchange is formed
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7 March 1969: Queen Elizabeth II officially opens the Victoria Line
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