Prestige oil spill causing great harm to the local fishing industry. The spill is the largest environmental disaster in the history of both Spain and Portugal. The amount of oil spilled was more than the "Exxon Valdez" incident and the toxicity considered higher, because of the higher water temperatures. In 2007 the Southern District of New York dismissed a 2003 lawsuit by the Kingdom of Spain against the American Bureau of Shipping, the international classification society which had certified the "Prestige" as in compliance with rules and laws, because ABS was a "person" per the International Convention on Civil Liability for Oil Pollution
Morris J. Berman oil spill it obvious that the crews of oil carrying vessels needed to be properly trained and equipped. Unlike the crew aboard the "Emily S.", the governments of the United States and Puerto Rico were well prepared to deal with the spill. The two countries also met most of the requirements that were set forth by the Oil Pollution Act of 1990. For example, a spill response plan for the area had been developed and it was executed to near perfection. Millions of dollars of oil cleanup equipment was already stationed in Puerto Rico and was deployed into action within a matter