ArcelorMittal case settled, but not without objection
PITTSBURGH — A settlement between residents of Donora and Monessen and a Monessen coke plant was approved Monday by Federal District Judge Arthur J. Schwab.
Schwab’s ruling closes the class action suit filed in June 2015 against ArcelorMittal Monessen for allegedly causing environmental problems affecting households near the coke plant. Households within a 1.5-mile radius of the plant were considered part of the class.
The suit claimed noxious odors and air particulates released through the negligence of ArcelorMittal caused residents to remain in their homes, forego the use of their yards, keep their windows closed in good weather and frequently clean their properties. The estimated 750 people who filed the proper documentation to join in the settlement will divvy up $200,500, each receiving around $267 under the settlement.
Three individuals filed objections to the settlement. One said it was unfair that each member of the class would receive the same amount of money, whether they lived next to the plant and had heavy damage, or lived a mile and a half away and had light damage. Another complained that the settlement amount was pennies on the dollar compared to the damages caused and the third objected to the attorneys’ fees, saying they were too high.
Only one of the objectors was present in court, reiterating his complaint against the settlement.
“There are continuing emissions building up on my home and I don’t think any of this is going to address the problem,” said Scott Mackey of Monongahela.
Mackey said his granddaughter has asthma and has been unable to use his swimming pool or play in the yard because of the noxious odors.
Mackey said his house is directly across the Monongahela River and at the same elevation as the smoke stacks at ArcelorMittal.
“I’m probably going to walk away from this with $260 if I did my math right, and other people are going to walk away with $260,000 and they didn’t suffer the problems,” Mackey said.
Mackey was referring to the attorneys’ fees in the case.
Those fees were addressed in a motion filed with the court last week. The fees requested totaled $252,000. Of that $137,389 is for fees, and $115.110 is for expenses incurred.
It was noted that the attorneys for the residents had put in 650 hours of work, at $211.36 per hour, which the judge found to be a reasonable amount. The fees are equal to 15.2 percent of the settlement amount.
The attorneys’ fees were approved Monday by Schwab. The $211.36 hourly rate quite frankly is well below market rates in this district,” Schwab said.
The settlement, with a total value of $902,500 including the value of improvements to be made to the plant, will significantly improve the quality of life for everyone in the community, the motion for attorneys’ fees states.
The terms of the settlement include cash payments of $452,500 for those parties to the lawsuit, and $450,000 in improvement measures at the plant.
The improvements include ceramic welding of walls and roof areas inside the oven chambers of the remaining coke ovens and paving the in-plant roadway beyond the administration building and along the warehouse toward the boiler house.
Attorney Steve Liddle, who represented the residents in the class action suit, said he had not contacted Mackey after the objection was filed, but felt his interests were still protected, given the wording of the settlement.
“He hasn’t released any claims in the future. He is still free to pursue claim of health issues; he’s still free to file personal damage claims,” Liddle said.
“It seems he feels the problems are continuing and the attorneys are walking away with much more,” Schwab said.
Liddle said corrective actions to the plant will take place over the next year, so it isn’t yet known if they will remedy the situation, but if they don’t, the residents are not barred from taking future action nor pursuing remedies through administrative actions by the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Mackey said he had filed complaints with the DEP for eight years, both against ArcelorMittal and the previous operator of the coke plant, with no results.
“I haven’t seen any improvements,” Mackey said. “I have had a DEP air monitoring station at my house and a dust fall jar.”
Liddle contended that 8,302 letters were sent out to potential class members and only three objected to the settlement, indicating that the others approved of what was proposed. Liddle said 796 residents elected to participate in the suit, with at least 750 of them submitting the proper documentation.
Schwab thanked Mackey for his participation in the case and asked if he wanted the option to opt out of the class action so he could pursue a private case. After a brief recess to give Mackey time to consult with another attorney representing the class, Mackey chose to opt out of the suit.
“The 200 and some dollars they are giving to the class doesn’t even scratch the surface of the damages and loss of use of my property or how it has affected my family’s health. It’s just an insult,” Mackey said.
Mackey said he most likely will not be able to find an attorney willing to take the case on as a contingency case.
“At least I got to express my opinion,” Mackey said.
The court did approve payments to the two lead members of the class who provided assistance to the attorneys in the case. Viktoria Maroz was granted $7,500, while Edward Tolliver was granted $2,500.
A number of individuals and organizations opted out of the suit prior to Monday, including the Mon Valley Alliance.
A total of eight opt-out notices were submitted to the court for a variety of reasons. One is an employee of the company; another is a minister whose home is owned by his church so he does not fit into the class of property owners.
The Mon Valley Alliance, an economic development organization, said the company is investing in the community. The others did not list specific reasons.