SHAWANO, Wis.—A lawsuit filed Monday morning by May, Koch & Brisco Law Firm targets Ford Motor Company (FMC) to seek redress for damages they caused to current and former residents of Shawano, Wisconsin with their negligent waste disposal.
The plaintiffs in this lawsuit are 210 current and former residents of Shawano, and all are members of the historic Menominee Indian Tribe, according to attorney Michela May.
The plaintiffs seek compensation from defendants FMC and the Shawano County Solid Waste Management Authority (SCSWMA) for improper waste disposal at the Shawano Mines Landfill Site (“Site”), according to their attorney.
FMC purchased The Site, a property in and near the City of Shawano, in 1965 and built the Shawano manufacturing …show more content…
“They contaminated the land, and then did nothing about it.”
In the late 1960s FMC began selling contaminated land to various entities. Portions of the Site were transferred to residential developers, who sold homes to the plaintiffs. FMC transferred the remaining portion of the Site to the SCSWMA in 1980 who allowed FMC to continue dumping hazardous and toxic waste, according to the lawsuit.
The SCSWMA was tasked with investigating, monitoring and cleaning the Site, but they failed to do so. FMC declared the Site clean in 1994, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) still had to come back and clean, and they have been since 2004, according the attorney May.
Since FMC hid the true problems within the Site, toxic and hazardous waste has contaminated the soil, air and groundwater at the Site since 1965. It was not until 2010 that the plaintiffs were told that their residences and properties were contaminated, according to the lawsuit.
“What was done to these people was unconscionable,” attorney May said. “FMC is directly responsible for the injuries in this community and the pain and fear people are
The plaintiffs in this lawsuit are 210 current and former residents of Shawano, and all are members of the historic Menominee Indian Tribe, according to attorney Michela May.
The plaintiffs seek compensation from defendants FMC and the Shawano County Solid Waste Management Authority (SCSWMA) for improper waste disposal at the Shawano Mines Landfill Site (“Site”), according to their attorney.
FMC purchased The Site, a property in and near the City of Shawano, in 1965 and built the Shawano manufacturing …show more content…
“They contaminated the land, and then did nothing about it.”
In the late 1960s FMC began selling contaminated land to various entities. Portions of the Site were transferred to residential developers, who sold homes to the plaintiffs. FMC transferred the remaining portion of the Site to the SCSWMA in 1980 who allowed FMC to continue dumping hazardous and toxic waste, according to the lawsuit.
The SCSWMA was tasked with investigating, monitoring and cleaning the Site, but they failed to do so. FMC declared the Site clean in 1994, but the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) still had to come back and clean, and they have been since 2004, according the attorney May.
Since FMC hid the true problems within the Site, toxic and hazardous waste has contaminated the soil, air and groundwater at the Site since 1965. It was not until 2010 that the plaintiffs were told that their residences and properties were contaminated, according to the lawsuit.
“What was done to these people was unconscionable,” attorney May said. “FMC is directly responsible for the injuries in this community and the pain and fear people are