Manufacturer agrees to
settle PCB lawsuit
Wednesday, April 25, 2001
Anniston,
Ala. --- Solutia Inc. has agreed to pay $40 million to settle a suit brought
by nearly 1,600 Anniston residents who claimed that their community was poisoned
with PCBs and that the firm tried to cover it up.
The
chemical contamination allegedly was spread by the chemical division of the
Monsanto Co., which manufactured PCBs in Anniston until 1972. Monsanto spun
off that division and renamed it Solutia in 1997.
Ralph
Knowles, an attorney for the Anniston residents, said Tuesday the sides agreed
to a settlement in which the average payment to plaintiffs will be about $12,000.
Each plaintiff, including about 500 minors, will receive at least $5,000,
said Knowles, of Atlanta.
In
addition to paying the residents, Solutia agreed to pay $2.5 million to relocate
plaintiffs who live close to the chemical plant; $3.5 million to a charitable
foundation to assist residents exposed to PCBs; and $1 million for part of
the court costs.
Tom
Bistline, assistant general counsel for the St. Louis-based company, said
the settlement is not an admission of guilt. He said that by settling out
of court, the company avoided a potentially lengthy trial, allowing it to
focus on environmental and safety issues at the plant.
The
two sides agreed on the settlement after 2 1/2 weeks of trial in U.S. District
Court in Birmingham.
A
10 a.m. hearing on the settlement was set for today before U.S. District Judge
Inge Johnson.
Attorneys
for the Anniston residents had told the nine-member jury the company should
be forced to pay a "substantial" amount.
Solutia
didn't deny the chemical escaped from the plant to the area water supply.
But, it said, there was no proof any residents were harmed.
PCBs,
or polychlorinated biphenyls, were manufactured in Anniston from 1927 through
1972 for use as insulation in electrical equipment including transformers.
The government banned production in the late '70s amid questions about health
risks.
2001 copyright. Associated Press