Cleanup set for 200,000 waste tires left at Anderson business
State environmental officials are stepping in to clean up nearly 200,000 shredded tires left at a former central Indiana recycling business.
Environmental Issues
Articles
Insurer has no duty for contamination at Gary airport
The city of Gary’s lawsuit seeking payment for cleaning up contaminated property near the Gary/Chicago International Airport has stalled after the Indiana Court of Appeals found the business owner’s insurer had no duty to indemnify.
Group seeks 2nd hearing on tainted East Chicago site’s cleanup
East Chicago community group is asking for a second public hearing on the proposed cleanup of the site of a public housing complex that was evacuated and demolished because of industrial contamination. The East Chicago Calumet Coalition Community Advisory Group says many residents didn’t get to speak at a Nov. 29 hearing about a $26.5 million project to remove tainted soil from the site of the West Calumet Housing Complex.
Justices reject environmentalists’ appeal over border wall
The United States Supreme Court is rejecting an appeal from environmental groups trying to stop President Donald Trump from building a wall on the U.S.-Mexico border, even as other legal action against the wall is ongoing.
Hoosier Environmental Council attorney discusses CAFOs, industrial farming at McKinney
Murmurs of disgust were sprinkled throughout a packed lecture hall at Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law as law students looked at pictures of waste pits overflowing with animal poop last week. Their lecturer, Kim Ferraro of the Hoosier Environmental Council, spared no sensitive stomachs as she explained the process of industrial farming and the disposal of the billions of pounds of animal waste that ensue.
Judgment affirmed for insurer uninformed of claims
A divided Indiana Court of Appeals affirmed the grant of summary judgment to an insurance company after a client waited more than a decade to notify it had made payments in several suits brought against it.
Ohio River agency holds off vote on dropping pollution rules
A commission that watches over the Ohio River’s health has put off a vote on whether to move away from its role of setting pollution standards for the river. The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission decided against holding a vote Thursday on a change that would leave the responsibility of setting water quality standards up to the six individual states along the river.
COA allows environmental cleanup claims filed after 10 years
In a decision about the cleanup and redevelopment of an old industrial site, the Indiana Court of Appeals has provided a definitive answer to a long-simmering debate among Indiana environmental lawyers.
Turning brownfields into green land neither cheap nor easy
A 20-year-old state environmental law, oblique court decisions and a provision inserted seven years ago into the statute of limitations are coming together in a case from Elkhart that many environmental lawyers are hoping will finally settle lingering debates over when suits recouping cleanup costs may be filed.
Proposal to sunset Ohio River pollution standards yields flood of concern
Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission members, including three from Indiana, are preparing to vote on a proposal that would sunset the organization’s pollution control standards. That proposal has yielded thousands of pages of public comments from proponents who say ORSANCO’s standards are redundant and, more significantly, from opponents who fear water quality in Indiana would suffer.
EPA begins cleanup of toxic Indianapolis commercial property
The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday announced it has begun cleaning up a south-side Indianapolis property that has been soaked in hazardous waste for decades. The 1.35-acre property known as the AA Oil Site has been abandoned since 1993.
Dry cleaning machine maker not liable in environmental claim
The maker of 1960s-era coin-operated dry cleaning machines cannot be held liable for decades-old environmental contamination found at the site of a one-time southside Indianapolis laundromat, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.
Jury awards $289M to man who blames Roundup for cancer
A San Francisco jury’s $289 million award to a former school groundskeeper who said Monsanto’s Roundup left him dying of cancer will bolster thousands of pending cases and open the door for countless people who blame their suffering on the weed killer, the man’s lawyers said.
Pence family gas stations left costly environmental legacy
The collapse of an oil company linked to the Pence family in 2004 was widely publicized. Less known is that the state of Indiana — and, to a smaller extent, Kentucky and Illinois — are still on the hook for millions of dollars to clean up more than 85 of the company’s contaminated sites, including underground tanks that leaked toxic chemicals into soil, streams and wells.
Indiana lawmaker hopes to protect state forests from logging
An Indiana lawmaker plans to reintroduce legislation to protect the state’s forests after seeing the outcome of a timber cut that removed more than 1,700 trees.
Demolition begins at contaminated E. Chicago housing complex
Demolition has begun at a northwest Indiana public housing complex contaminated with arsenic and lead. Demolition of East Chicago's West Calumet Housing Complex will remove all buildings, foundations, streets and sidewalks, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Delaware County officials end fight against 10,000-hog farm
Officials in Delaware County are dropping their fight against a proposed 10,000-hog farm after threats of legal action since a state agency has approved the project. County commissioners had put a hold on building permits for the farm in the northern part of the county.
Muncie residents protest lead plant’s permit renewal
The state Department of Environmental Management has renewed a central Indiana lead plant’s operating permit for another five years after declining to hold a public hearing. The department said a hearing wasn’t needed because it had answered all of the comments it received during a public comment period.
Indiana-born judge Trump taunted to rule on border wall
An Indiana-born federal judge, whose Mexican heritage Donald Trump used to paint him as biased against him in a 2016 court case because of his immigration stance, will hear arguments in a lawsuit that could block construction of a border wall with Mexico.
Keeping East Chicago lead cleanup a priority
Two Statehouse Democrats from northwest Indiana know the cleanup of the contamination site in East Chicago will not only take years but also a steady state commitment. Their legislation — and affected residents’ federal court cases — aim to keep the issue in the spotlight.