According to documents, which were filed earlier this week, W.R. Grace & Co. has reached a deal with federal regulators involving the environmental cleanup costs for 33 contaminated sites.
Since 2001, the chemical maker has been under Chapter 11 protection after being bombarded with claims for damages due to toxic products.
Wednesday, Denver, Colo.-based lawyers for the U.S. Department of Justice environmental enforcement section said several government agencies had agreed to settle claims filed in Grace's bankruptcy case.
Terms of the bankruptcy settlement grant the United States a general unsecured claim of $34 million in Grace's Chapter 11 case, and a top-level priority claim of $2.3 million, court documents say.
The proposed deal, which will be floated for public comment, would cancel bankruptcy claims seeking to recoup the costs of eradicating contamination from 33 sites filed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture, the U.S. Department of the Interior, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Grace is far from exiting bankruptcy, but has said it will be able to cover all debts in full. Hearings are slated to start in January on how much Grace owes people with injuries linked to its asbestos products. The outcome of that proceeding will determine whether the company can make good on its pledge to pay all bills or whether, as asbestos plaintiffs' lawyers contend, Grace's asbestos damages exceed the value of the company.
Sites involved in the settlement announced Wednesday are located in Wisconsin, South Carolina, California, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Utah, Illinois, New York, Texas, Michigan, Colorado, North Dakota, Connecticut, Washington, Minnesota and New Jersey.
A portion of the settlement funds will also pay for costs of the probe by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry at Grace's Libby, Mont., vermiculite mining operation, according to documents filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del.
The company and some employees are under criminal indictment for allegedly covering up the extent of the asbestos contamination at the Libby mine. Grace denies wrongdoing.
(Source: Houston Chronicle)
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