In the Spring of 1991, the residents off the Village of Silver Creek, just south of Joplin, Missouri, were visited by an environmental nightmare. Routine testing conducted by the Missouri Department of Health documented the presence of an industrial chemical solvent, trichlorethylene (TCE) in the well water of several residences
Silver Creek is located immediately south of FAG Bearings Corporation, an industrial facility that used substantial quantities of TCE in its manufacturing process from 1972 through 1981.
The Village of Silver Creek, and the Village of Saginaw, located to the south of Silver Creek, were not on the city of Joplin water system. The residents of these suburban communities depended on their individual wells for their entire water supply.
Many area residents moved to Silver Creek and Saginaw Villages because of the spacious lots, nice homes, and semi-rural character of the area. Others moved there specifically because they liked having their own well as a source of water rather than being dependent upon the city water supply. Several years before the discovery of the TCE contamination, the residents of Silver Creek rejected an effort to connect the village to the Joplin water supply.
Predictably, the news of TCE contamination of the water supply created tremendous anxiety for the village residents, with questions about the safety of the water supply and potential health effects. Once contamination of TCE was confirmed, an alternative water supply had to be obtained for all of their drinking and cooking needs.
Despite alternative drinking water supplies, the residents were still required to bathe or shower in TCE contaminated water.
The Missouri Department of Health, after discovering the TCE contamination, notified the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) of the problem. In turn, the MDNR brought in the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which conducted extensive testing of the residents wells within the Villages of Silver Creek and Saginaw.
Ultimately, dozens of wells were found to be contaminated with TCE, as well as its break- down products.
As word of the TCE contamination within the villages became widespread, the residents found themselves living a nightmare. Meetings were held with representatives of the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and the Environmental Protection Agency.
Mixed messages were delivered. Residents were told to discontinue drinking the water, but were not immediately provided with an alternative water source. Bottled water was eventually provided by the EPA, but only to those residents who had high level contamination.
Village residents banded together to form a citizens committee and were successful in pressuring the EPA to provide water to all residents with any contamination, and also got local businesses to donate bottled water to the residents who wanted it.
Ultimately, a permanent alternative water source was arranged when the board of Silver Creek Village contracted with the Missouri American Water Company to hook into the Joplin water system. The individual residents of Silver Creek Village were assessed the costs of installing that water system.
A lawsuit was filed on behalf of residents of Silver Creek Village and Saginaw Village seeking damages against FAG Bearings Corporation, identified by the MDNR as the source of the TCE.
John Parisi of our firm spearheaded the case efforts on behalf of our clients, and helped argue the case in federal court. Given the size and complexity of the case, the law firms of Shamberg, Johnson & Bergman, Payne & Jones and Humphrey, Ferrington & McClain, joined us to represent additional plaintiffs.
Claims were brought under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, CERCLA, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, RCRA, as well as state law claims for nuisance, trespass, strict liability, negligence, medical monitoring, fear of cancer, and increased risk of cancer.
No claims for personal injury were brought on behalf of our clients in this lawsuit, and all these claims were specifically reserved in the eventual settlement reached with defendants.
Initially, a class action was filed in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri, but it was not certified by the federal district court. We then filed a consolidated action for individual claimants represented by the three law firms in Missouri state court, in Neosho, Missouri. Litigation was actively conducted in both state and federal court for over two and one-half years, resulting in a settlement in the amount of $4,000.000 between FAG Bearings Corporation and the 68 plaintiffs. Settlement included payment for the diminished value of the plaintiffs property, as well as for nuisance (the loss of use of enjoyment of property as a result of the TCE contamination). The settlement also provides for repayment of the cost of the water system put in by the Village of Silver Creek, as well as payment to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources for the water system installed in Saginaw Village.
The settlement of these damage claims does not affect the ongoing Remedial Investigation Feasibility Study being conducted by the MDNR to determine how to best clean up the groundwater contamination.
