With a symbolic one dollar for every year the earth has been around, the Associated Press is reporting that AEP has agreed to pay $4.6 Billion in that lawsuit initiated by 8 eastern states, directed at the midwestern coal plants contaminating the air and making the clouds rain acid:
The settlement requires American Electric Power, based in Columbus, Ohio, to reduce chemical emissions that cause acid rain by at least 69 percent over the next decade.
It also fines AEP an additional $15 million in civil penalties and another $60 million in cleanup and mitigation costs to help heal parkland and waterways that have been hurt by the pollution.
Just for some perspective, this marketbasket type settlement marks a new milestone in environmental settlement history.
Exxon Mobil Corp. estimates it has paid $3.5 billion in cleanup costs, government settlements, fines and compensation for the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill. The company is fighting an additional $2.5 billion in punitive fines.
Wonderful news! There’s not much detail about the contents of the basket on the internet yet but I’ll update as more appears. This is a bfd, and a major legal victory, so let’s see if it makes the morning news. Congratulations to all people, statues, streams and national landmarks involved.
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on lady liberty’s face?
big big smooches to you lori!!!!!!! thanks for this!!!!
and to melvin too…….. i miss him
I have behind me a 20 year career in high tech research and development. As such allow me my two cents while I rain upon your parade. I may be going for the jugular vein in some respect but, truth is truth.
While I do support and endorse enviornmental responsibilty the fact is pollution intensive industry has been exported to countries totally exempt from any enviornmental concerns.
The compact “energy saving” light bulb held by the statue of “liberty” are all made by people residing in a totalitarian communist police state and as such I consider the entire graphic as profane an image as http://www.paingate.com.
And allow not one of these things to break open in your household. By US standards droppage on the floor means the release into your house of toxic mercury and a mandatory $2000 dollar visit by Clean Harbors.
Yes, I know a solid American who after supervising the transfer of American industry to Mexico chose to “retire” and divorce himself completely from the company.
He refused even the customary retirement party. I think it’s what he saw in Mexico and as an American could not deal with it.
It is what I call the Col Theodore S. Westhusing effect.
AEP will most likely go bankrupt much like Beede Oil.
http://www.epa.gov/r…
And therefore lead to innocent others paying for the damages.
Again, sorry for going for the jugular vein.
Truely I lament at raining on the parade but being in the biz I have to be the whistleblower.