Chemical behemoth Monsanto has finally settled an eight-year legal dispute with Seattle, the city attorney’s office said Thursday. The two parties had agreed to a $160 million payment for Monsanto’s role in contaminating a river that flows through the middle of the city with pollutants that endangered fish, animals, and humans.
Just south of downtown, the Duwamish River empties into Puget Sound, cutting through Seattle. The city’s complaint states that water samples taken from the Lower Duwamish revealed the presence of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are synthetic chemical compounds produced by Monsanto.
Paints, caulking, and sealants on structures still contained PCBs even after Monsanto stopped making them in 1977. This has led to the persistent contamination of the Lower Duwamish River with PCBs in the stormwater runoff.
In 2016, Seattle filed a lawsuit against Monsanto, claiming that the corporation “was well aware” that PCBs were harmful to aquatic life, humans, and the environment; nonetheless, it persisted in producing these chemicals.
No crime, negligence, or breach of law was admitted by Monsanto under the terms of the settlement, and the corporation must pay $160 million to Seattle by August 4th. The majority of the settlement—$125 million—will cover “unique claims” pertaining to the Seattle case, while $35 million will go toward PCB cleanup.
The city was compelled to build a stormwater treatment facility along the river to eliminate PCBs as part of a consent decree that was issued by the Washington Department of Ecology and the Environmental Protection Agency. Roughly $27 million was the expected price tag.
According to the lawsuit, the river is a Superfund Site, and the EPA estimated in 2014 that cleaning it up would cost $342 million. The city will cover the majority of the expenses.
Davison claimed that the city’s participation in mediation resulted in an unusual settlement sum, saving the case from a September trial date.
According to Davison, the expansion of Seattle Public Utilities’ program to detect sources of pollution is one potential action that might be taken with the money to help preserve the Duwamish.
