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Weitz & Luxenberg files property damage suit against The Coca-Cola Company on behalf of Paw Paw, Michigan, residents harmed by soil contamination
April 26, 2010 – Weitz & Luxenberg announced today that the firm has filed a property damage lawsuit against The Coca-Cola Company, and certain of its affiliates, on behalf of 80 residents and former residents of Paw Paw, Michigan, whose homes have been damaged by years of soil contamination.
You can read the complaint here.
“The affected residents are struggling without drinkable town water, which is made even worse by the impact that Coca-Cola’s contamination has on residents’ daily use of their homes, diminished property values and health concerns,” said Robin Greenwald, head of the Environmental and Toxic Torts Unit at Weitz & Luxenberg. “Coca-Cola has known about the problems it has been causing residents for at least 10 years, having been fined by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality for its pollution practices.”
The lawsuit (DOCKET # 10-59-614-NO), filed in the Circuit Court for the County of Van Buren, charges Coca-Cola with contaminating the town’s drinking water with chemical pollutants that have migrated onto plaintiffs’ home properties from Coca-Cola’s Minute Maid brand beverage production facility in Paw Paw. The Paw Paw Township Assessor has already notified certain residents that their homes’ “state equalized values” have been reduced due to groundwater contamination from the Coca-Cola plant.
According to the 7-count complaint, Coca-Cola sprayed waste water onto the soil for more than 30 years. Today, nearby groundwater shows signs of significant contamination with detectable levels of heavy metals including arsenic, lead, iron and manganese.
Paw Paw, Michigan community
Paw Paw, Michigan, a village with a population of approximately 3,400 residents, is located in the southwestern part of Michigan on Interstate 94, approximately 20 miles west of Kalamazoo. At least two dozen home owners there have been affected as their property is situated near the source of the contamination – Coca-Cola’s Minute Maid plant on Red Arrow Highway.
According to state records, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality fined Coca-Cola $50,000 when it violated its waste-discharge permit by over-saturating its Paw Paw spray fields 10 years ago. In 2001, Coca-Cola built a $7-million wastewater treatment plant to correct the problem. Based on the continuing contamination problem, however, this remedy has not resulted in the groundwater being cleaned up.
Paw Paw homeowners named in the lawsuit are seeking restitution for the contamination, which has impacted real estate values. Community members have also reported health issues, including gastrointestinal, kidney and central nervous system disorders.
People who have been affected by the Paw Paw contamination may contact our environment unit to discuss their situation by completing the form below.
see also:
Legal Resources
Paw Paw, Mich. residents reach out to law firm after contaminationPaw Paw Residents: Free environmental lawsuit review with our law firm
Meetings
Consult environmental lawyer at Aug. 25 town meeting in Paw Paw, Mich.Lawyer: Paw Paw residents invited to groundwater contamination meeting
Montana Oil Spill
The Exxon Montana Oil Spill of 2011: a Fourth of July disasterMontana Oil Spill: The Exxon Pipeline Rupture Spilled 1000 barrels of oil into the Yellowstone River. Weitz & Luxenberg can help.
