HAMMOND, Ind. (AP) _ A federal judge is weighing whether to give final approval to a class-action settlement calling for the operators of a northern Indiana wood-recycling plant to clean up and shutter the site within five years.
U.S. District Court Judge Philip Simon was scheduled to consider the proposed settlement of the lawsuit involving Soil Solutions Co. on Monday during a hearing in his Hammond courtroom.
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Environmental attorney Kim Ferraro sued VIM Recycling on behalf of local residents in 2009, two years before the Elkhart plant was sold to Soil Solutions. The plant grinds scrap wood into animal bedding and mulch.
Residents near the plant allege that its dust and other emissions threaten their health and keep them indoors. About 1,800 residents are part of the class-action lawsuit.
