The respective environmental protection oversight agencies of the United States and the State of Illinois filed a lawsuit against two subsidiaries of XTRA Inc., XTRA Intermodal Inc. and X-L-Co. Inc., for violations of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA) on Tuesday. The Southern District of Illinois complaint seeks several forms of relief relating to releases and threatened releases of hazardous substances from facilities at the Old American Zinc Plant Superfund Site in Fairmont City and Washington Park, Illinois.
According to the filing, the Site is a 132-acre facility where zinc smelting operations were conducted. Surrounding areas reportedly contain elevated concentrations of metals like lead, cadmium, zinc, arsenic, and manganese due to the site’s operation of a zinc smelter until the 1950s. In addition, a by-product of the smelting is residual slag or “clinker” that was consolidated by the former owner into piles around the facility.
X-L-Co. purchased the Site in 1979, and thereafter, XTRA Intermodal expanded its truck terminal operations there. In March 1995, X-L-Co. transferred its ownership of the facility to XTRA Intermodal, who still owns the property today.
Allegedly, XTRA Intermodal and X-L-Co. flattened piles of clinker by moving and spreading it around to level the ground for the trucking operations and access roads. The complaint seeks to hold both of the defendants accountable for the release of hazardous materials because of their role improperly disposing of them at times when they owned or operated the Site.
In 2012, the EPA concluded a multi-year study of the Site and selected a final clean-up remedy. According to the complaint, clean-up included the excavation of contaminated soils, and the consolidation and capping of that contaminated soil with soil barrier and vegetation cover layers.
The plaintiffs bring three causes of action under CERCLA for declaratory relief, abatement, and judgment against the defendants, jointly and severally, for all unreimbursed response costs incurred in connection with Site clean-up, and for present and future natural resource damage, including assessment costs.
The United States is represented by the U.S. Department of Justice, the United States Attorney’s Office, and Illinois by its Attorney General’s Office.
