The litigation, including the pending class action suits relate specifically to a chemical plant once located in Nitro, West Virginia and activities which took place 40 to 60 years ago.
Scott Partridge, vice president of Monsanto Company, said: “These settlements ensure that both individual and community concerns are addressed, and services are made available for the people of Nitro. We are pleased to resolve this matter and end any concerns about historic operations at the Nitro plant.”
These resolutions provide for eligible class members in the Nitro community to have their health monitored and to have their houses professionally cleaned.
Approximately 4,500 homes are located in areas where individual remediation of homes may be desirable. A programme will be created to offer free professional cleaning of these homes and provide funding of up to $9m dollars for this purpose.
The parties have agreed that a 30-year medical monitoring programme will be established at a local hospital. Thousands of persons who lived, worked, or attended school in the Nitro area during the period of time covered by the lawsuit will be eligible to apply for benefits.
The plan will be supported by a primary fund of $21m which will pay for medical testing of eligible class members. Up to $63m in additional funding will be available over the thirty-year life of the medical screening programme.
In addition to the direct benefits these agreements will provide to the residents of the Nitro area, Monsanto has agreed to pay court approved legal fees and litigation costs incurred by class counsel over the last seven years.
The class action resolutions will now be fully reviewed by circuit judge Derek Swope to ensure the fairness of the class action settlement agreements.
Source: Monsanto Company
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