Texas company to pay B.C. First Nation $12M over 2016 tugboat spill

A British Columbia First Nation says a Texas company has agreed to pay more than $12 million in the first portion of a "multi-part settlement" after a grounded tugboat spilled about 110,000 litres of pollutants in central coast waters in 2016.

The Tribal Council at the Heiltsuk Nation says the agreement involves parties including Houston-based liquid marine transport operator Kirby Corp.

The statement posted on social media says Kirby has agreed to pay the Heiltsuk Nation after a court order is issued later this year, and its leadership will attend a washing ceremony in Bella Bella, B.C.

Kirby has also agreed that its vessels will no longer travel through Heiltsuk waters without prior consent.

“This spill affected marine life, food-gathering areas, and access to a place that holds deep cultural meaning," the statement said. 

The tugboat Nathan E. Stewart ran aground near Bella Bella in October 2016 and sank, spilling contaminants into the water, much of it diesel fuel. 

A copy of the settlement agreement provided by the Heiltsuk Nation notes the tugboat ran aground after the second mate fell asleep while on deck and forgot to change course. 

The First Nation says the spill's impacts have lasted years, environmentally, economically, culturally and spiritually.

In a separate statement issued Friday, elected chief Marilyn Slett said the settlement amount is small compared with the total losses faced by the First Nation. 

"It shows just how inadequate Canada’s oil spill liability and compensation system is when it comes to protecting Indigenous people from catastrophic cultural loss," Slett said in the statement. 

Slett said the nation has yet to settle other claims linked to the spill with the federal government and the federal Ship-source Oil Pollution Fund and called on both parties to come to the table. 

"Their absence is glaring as the federal government prepares to consider a pipeline and oil tanker proposal from Alberta that would impact the coastal waters and marine resources Indigenous peoples depend on here in B.C.," she said. 

The Heiltsuk Nation has been prominent in environmental efforts along B.C.'s coast, most recently as one of six Indigenous partners in an agreement with Ottawa and the province to create a 6,700-square-kilometre national marine conservation reserve.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2026.

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