Environmental groups file motion in Alcoa lawsuit
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A pair of environmental groups has filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit against a subsidiary of Pittsburgh-based Alcoa Corp. over alleged violations of state and federal environmental laws.
The Indiana Department of Environmental Management filed a civil suit in January against Warrick Newco LLC, which operates an aluminum smelting plant in Newburgh and is accused of violating its permit by exceeding chemical discharge levels over a several year period.
In the suit filed in Warrick Circuit Court, IDEM noted that Warrick Newco entered into an agreed order with the state in March 2021 to resolve previous allegations of illegal dumping of chemicals into the Ohio River. However, the department said the company has failed to fully comply with the order.
Since the order was reached, IDEM alleges that Warrick Newco has continued to exceed daily limitations on the discharge of toxic chemicals, including copper, mercury, zinc, chlorine, fluoride, and nickel.
The Sierra Club and Environmental Integrity Project filed the motion to intervene last week to assert their interests “in protecting the health of the Ohio River and to ensure that these interests, which are distinctly and adversely affected by pollution of the Ohio River, are adequately represented and protected.”
“Alcoa’s permit violations make pollution on the already-polluted Ohio River worse. For instance, there is already too much mercury in the Ohio to be safe for birds and fish. When Alcoa blows its mercury limits month after month, it’s adding to the problem,” Meg Parish with the Environmental Integrity Project, said in a news release. “We’re intervening in the state’s enforcement case against Alcoa to ensure the smelter will finally comply with its pollution limits and pay penalties for its two years of almost constant violations.”
The two groups last November sent a notice of intent to sue to Alcoa, but IDEM filed its lawsuit before the groups brought their case to court.
In its lawsuit, IDEM is asking the court to order to enforce the original agreed order, though a specific deadline for enforcement was not outlined. The department said the court could also call for penalties to be levied, but a specific number was not provided.
A spokesperson for IDEM said the department would not comment on pending litigation. A spokesperson for Alcoa said the company takes the issues raised in the lawsuit “very seriously” and will continue working with IDEM to address them.
“We have been in continuous discussions with the regulator, and Alcoa has a compliance plan in place with IDEM,” the spokesperson said. “With our ongoing efforts, we are confident that we will be able to address the items in IDEM’s lawsuit, which covers the same matters set out in a Notice of Intent previously announced by the Sierra Club and Environmental Integrity Project.”
A timeline for a decision from the court is not known.
“We look forward to ending Alcoa’s egregious water violations, saving good union jobs and transitioning the facility to clean aluminum production,” said Joab Schultheis, energy committee chair for the Hoosier Chapter Sierra Club. “Aluminum is a key material for clean energy products like solar panels and electric vehicles and it can be made right here in Indiana.”
In July 2022, Alcoa announced it had ended one of its three smelting lines at the Warrick Operations. The company said the move was made due to “operational challenges” but did not provide specifics.
A year earlier, Alcoa sold its rolling mill business at the Warrick Operations to Kaiser Aluminum Corp. in California in a deal valued at $670 million, though the company maintained its smelter and electric generating units at the site.