FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ENR
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 1998
DOJ (202) 514-2008

EPA (202) 260-9828

TDD (202) 514-1888

GENERAL ELECTRIC AGREES TO $200 MILLION

SETTLEMENT TO CLEAN UP THE HOUSATONIC RIVER

Washington, D.C. -- General Electric has agreed to an over $200 million settlement in principle of environmental claims resulting from pollution of the Housatonic River and other areas by chemical releases from GE's plant in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Justice announced today. The claims result from a long history of GE's use and disposal of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) and other hazardous substances at the plant, which GE no longer uses for manufacturing.

"I am pleased that GE has agreed to clean up the massive PCB contamination they have caused in Pittsfield," said EPA Administrator Carol M. Browner. "It's high time to begin the clean up of the Housatonic River and take action to protect the health of the community. GE's agreement to help fund an economic redevelopment package to benefit the community is a significant part of this agreement. It ensures that public health and the environment will be protected and the local economy will prosper."

"The people of Massachusetts, Connecticut and the many others who visit the Housatonic deserve a river free from contamination," said Lois J. Schiffer, Assistant Attorney General for Environment and Natural Resources. "I'm proud that we've reached an agreement in principle to get the river cleaned up. This is an important agreement that has General Electric working cooperatively with Federal, state and local governments to restore the River."

Under the settlement, GE will remove contaminated sediments from the one-half mile of the Housatonic River nearest the GE plant. Through a cost-sharing agreement, GE will also fund much of the anticipated cost of an additional mile-and-one-half of river cleanup to be conducted by EPA. These river cleanups will include contaminated river banks and soils in properties in the flood plain along the river. Later, after a cleanup plan is selected for downstream portions of the river, GE will perform that cleanup as well. In addition, GE will remedy contamination at the Pittsfield plant and other nearby areas, including a school and several commercial properties.

The settlement also will address claims that hazardous substances releases from the GE plant caused injuries to natural resources in the Housatonic River downstream of the plant, extending through Massachusetts and into Connecticut. In addition to cleaning up the injured resource, GE has agreed to pay $15 million in damages and to conduct a number of projects designed to acquire or enhance wildlife habitat. The damages payment will be used by the natural resource trustees -- the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and agencies of Massachusetts and Connecticut -- to restore, replace, or acquire the equivalent of the injured natural resources.

"This settlement will enable the governments and GE to begin restoring the ecological integrity of a truly valuable natural resource - the Housatonic River," said Jamie Rappaport Clark, Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. "We expect restoration to enhance the biological diversity of the Housatonic River Valley, and to create significant recreational and economic benefits for the people of Western Massachusetts and Connecticut."

"This important settlement agreement will repair long-standing contamination problems in the Housatonic River," said Terry Garcia, Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere at the Department of Commerce. "It is the direct result of cooperation between all levels of government and demonstrates the benefits that accrue when responsible parties and the government work together to resolve environmental problems."

The City of Pittsfield will benefit, too, from the settlement. GE has agreed to a "brownfield" redevelopment project on a portion of the defunct plant, including a multi-million dollar investment in Pittsfield, in conjunction with the new Pittsfield Economic Development Authority ("PEDA"). PEDA will commit up to $4 million of anticipated revenues from the redevelopment to further enhancement of natural resources.

"Brownfields" are abandoned pieces of land ­ usually in inner city areas - that are lightly contaminated from previous industrial use. These sites do not qualify as Superfund toxic waste national priority sites because they do not pose a serious public health risk to the community. However, because of the stigma of contamination and legal barriers to redevelopment, businesses do not buy the land and sites remain roped off, unproductive and vacant. GE has agreed to redevelop such a site as part of its settlement package.

GE and the government agencies involved will now turn their attention to negotiating a consent decree that will be the legal embodiment of the settlement. Assuming that those negotiations are successful, the settlement would be submitted to public comment and approval of a federal judge before becoming finally effective.

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