Anniston Star, Matthew Korade
Published August 20, 2003

Traveling the congested road between a Heflin funeral home and the federal courthouse in Birmingham Wednesday, Judge Joel Laird got the news that the case that had displaced him from his Anniston office for a year and a half had ended.

The Calhoun County circuit judge did not believe it until he arrived at the courthouse. Now, Laird said, all he can think is, "I'm coming home."

Attorneys for more than 20,000 plaintiffs in federal and state cases over PCB contamination in Anniston announced a $700 million settlement Wednesday with the companies accused of creating the pollution, Solutia and its parent company, Monsanto.

Laird, who has had to try the state case out of a Gadsden courtroom instead of his own, called the agreement "a big step, and a positive step." The settlement will be signed Aug. 26.

Hearing about the agreement for the first time Wednesday evening, local leaders and environmental activists were heartened and surprised.

"I believe that's a good settlement," said David Baker, of Community Against Pollution, one of the plaintiffs in the state case. "I believe they are in the right ballpark for doing what is right for the people ... It is an eye-opener of the community to know that Monsanto is trying to do the right thing."

Brendan DeMelle, analyst for Environmental Working Group, said his organization was pleased that Anniston would be a cleaner, safer place for generations.

"This should mark the beginning of the end of Monsanto's toxic legacy in Anniston," DeMelle said. "We're sure there will be much-deserved celebration in the community tonight, though we're not sure what it will mean for individual victims."

Besides the $600 million cash settlement, the agreement calls for the creation of a healthcare clinic to treat residents for illnesses associated with PCB contamination.

"It's great news," said Anniston Mayor Chip Howell. "That's one thing that I know the community was very interested in."

So much energy has been placed on the PCB issues that the city has been more "playing defense than offense" in planning for its future, the mayor said. "Now hopefully we can press on."

Others were cautiously optimistic. Pete Conroy, director of the Environmental Policy Center at Jacksonville State University, said the devil remains in the details, but "on the surface, it seems like a reasonable end to a long-fought battle.

"Best of all, the process is moving forward and it's no longer stuck in the mud."

The settlement came on the heels of an agreement between the Environmental Protection Agency and defendant companies to clean up PCB-contaminated sites. Wednesday's agreement injects $50-60 million into the cleanup process, which will be overseen by a federal monitor.

"I think it's important, because it does mean that the healing can start," David Cain, Solutia's plant manager, said of the settlement. "We still have a lot of work to do (on the cleanup) and we're going to get out there and do it."

Sherri Sumners, Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce president, said the settlement will free people to focus on other issues important to community life, such as education and infrastructure.

"It's good news."