{Winfield, West Virginia}...Monday morning, a fairness hearing began at the Putnam County Circuit Court in the huge class-action Monsanto dioxin lawsuit first filed in 2004, alleging the company unsafely burned dioxin wastes at its Nitro plant. A settlement came on the verge of an expected six month trial in which Nitro residents sought medical monitoring for dioxin related illnesses and a cleanup of what they argue is a contaminated community. In a tentative settlement, Monsanto agreed on February 24th to pay up to $93 million to class-members in the lawsuit. The company agreed to a 30 year medical monitoring program with a primary fund of $21 million for testing, and up to $63 million in additional funding, if necessary. It also agreed to spend $9 million cleaning 4,500 homes. Residents can file individual lawsuits against the company if medical testing shows they developed medical illnesses as a result of the dioxin exposure. The Monsanto plant has been operating in Nitro for over 50 years. The plant's production of the defoliant Agent Orange resulted in the creation of dioxin as a toxic chemical byproduct. Some came forward asking Putnam County Circuit Judge Derek Swope to turn down the deal.
