WHITE PLAINS – Audrey Strauss, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Peter Lopez, Regional Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), filed a civil lawsuit on Thursday against Cytec Industries, Inc. and National Grid, and settled the lawsuit on the same day.
In the complaint, brought pursuant to the Superfund statute – the United States alleged that the Defendants arranged for the disposal or treatment of mercury by Port Refinery, Inc. (“Port Refinery”), a mercury refining business in the Village of Rye Brook, which led to releases of mercury into the environment. Through the lawsuit, EPA sought to collect the costs that it has incurred since April 2004 in connection with its clean-up of mercury at the Port Refinery Superfund Site (the “Site”) in the Village of Rye Brook in Westchester County.
Acting United States Attorney Audrey Strauss said “Both Cytec and National Grid contributed to contamination in a residential community by arranging for the treatment or disposal of toxic mercury, and now they are each paying a share of the costs they have imposed on the community. This office will continue to hold responsible parties accountable for their share of the costs at the site.”
The settlement provides for a combined payment of $142,653 by the Defendants, has been lodged with the District Court for a period of at least 30 days, after which it will be submitted for the Court’s approval.
The money will be used to reimburse the agencies that cleaned up the toxic mercury. Pursuant to the consent decree, Cytec will pay $93,076 to be paid by Cytec and $49,577 will be paid by National Grid.
