On September 5, 1991, a pipeline owned and operated by Amoco Pipeline Company ruptured during an attempt to transfer oil from Amoco Pipeline Company's barge loading facility at High Island, Texas, to a transport barge in the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway. When the 10-inch pipeline ruptured it spilled over 30,000 gallons of light crude oil into a seven acre marsh, located adjacent to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW). Strong tidal currents and winds moved the oil into the GIWW and onto Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge (NWR). Marshes impacted by the spill provide important habitat for numerous species of birds, terrestrial reptiles, and mammals, all of which were directly impacted by floating oil. Aquatic resources impacted included commercial and recreationally important fish and shellfish. The Trustees and Amoco Pipeline reached an agreement that the construction of a water control structure on Anahuac NWR, to enhance and protect approximately 10,000 acres of brackish marsh, would adequately compensate the public for injuries to natural resources. Total settlement, including estimates of “in-kind” services, was approximately $350,000. The restoration project was constructed in 1992 and is fully operational. The water control structures are being managed by the Anahuac NWR to protect and enhance the brackish marsh by providing water level control, reducing saltwater intrusion and excessive tidal fluctuation, and preventing future entry of oil or other substances released into the GIWW.