Firm pays $63M for cleanup at former Acton plant, among others
Maryland-based W.R. Grace & Co. paid more than $63 million Wednesday to resolve claims for environmental cleanups at 39 sites across the country, including its former Acton plant where the company manufactured chemicals from 1954 to 1982.
The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) deemed that two Acton water-supply wells had been contaminated in 1978 by the site, and so it was placed under the EPA’s Superfund Program, which holds responsible organizations accountable for cleanup costs, according to the agency.
W.R. Grace, a global supplier of specialty chemicals, filed for bankruptcy in April 2001, and as part of those proceedings was required to resolve environmental liability claims brought against the company by the EPA, the agency said.
W.R. Grace payments will go toward cleanup costs at sites in 21 states, including the former Acton plant, which the EPA has already treated for groundwater contamination. The site extends into neighboring Concord.
“Communities across the United States will benefit for this payment of present and future cleanup costs,” said Robert G. Dreher, acting assistant attorney general for the federal Environment and Natural Resources Division. “The justice Department is committed to holding polluters responsible for their environmental legacy and won’t just walk away leaving taxpayers to pick up the tab.”
The $63-million payment includes approximately $54 million to fund past and future EPA cleanup activities, and $9 million for other federal agencies, according to the EPA.
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