A lawsuit which was filed against the Covanta Energy Co. based in New Jersey who operated the Pacific Oroville Power Inc. (POPI) cogeneration plant in South Oroville has been settled for $825,000.
A District Attorney and the county’s environmental prosecutor, organized and filed the claim over the burning of what was called urban waste to create electricity. Originally timber was burned in the 1980s but as the timber industry died down, the plant began to burn the remains of torn down buildings which could contain asbestos, metals and other potentially environmentally hazardous materials.
The DA’s office tested the ash and found elements of materials which can cause developmental problems as well as cancer and the ash went to landfills in Anderson, Placer County and Glenn County and was then plowed into land at many farms in the area as an addition to the soil, including fields planted for cattle food.
The settlement also stops the company from transporting or disposing of the ash it creates at its existing plants or contracting it out as a soil amendment for agricultural use.
If you or someone you know is suffering from an asbestos related disease, such as mesothelioma, asbestosis, or lung cancer, contact the Law Office of Brayton Purcell, LLP at (800) 598-0314 immediately, or contact us online for a free consultation. You may be entitled to an asbestos payout as part of an individual or class action lawsuit.
