Madigan
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (Legal Newsline) - Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against the past and present owners of the Wood River Refinery in Roxana for allegedly allowing contaminants to enter the groundwater under the refinery.
WRB Refining LP, the current owner of the refinery, along with ConocoPhillips and Shell Oil, the former owners and operators of the refinery, were named as defendants in the lawsuit. The defendants allegedly allowed contaminants such as hazardous wastes, gasoline and oil to leak into the groundwater at the Wood River Refinery and migrate beyond the refinery's property line, violating the Illinois Environmental Protection Act.
"These companies must be held accountable for the environmental and public health damage caused by this contamination," Madigan said. "This lawsuit seeks a complete assessment and a plan to restore the quality of the groundwater and subsurface to pre-contamination conditions and to protect the people living in Roxana."
The lawsuit seeks the statutory maximum civil penalty of $50,000 per violation and an added $10,000 penalty for each day the alleged violations occurred. The lawsuit also seeks the reimbursement of costs incurred by the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for the case and cleanup.