A $72 million settlement has been reached to resolve environmental issues stemming from the operation of 10 leading mining, milling and smelting facilities operated in southeast Missouri by the Doe Run Company of St. Louis.
Doe Run has agreed to spend $65 million to correct violations of environmental laws at the facilities. It will pay a $7 million civil penalty, half going to the federal government and half to the state government. Doe Run also will establish a trust fund totaling between $28 million and $33 million to clean up facilities at Herculaneum, Brushy Creek, Buick, Fletcher, Sweetwater, Viburnum, and West Fork.
The Attorney General’s office says the pollution controls to be installed will reduce lead, carbon monoxide and other pollutants. The settlement, according to the office, will not only improve air quality, but will improve the water quality of streams adjacent to the Doe Run facilities.
Doe Run plans to close the Herculaneum lead smelter by the end of 2013. The company has set aside $8.14 million to guarantee the clean-up. Projections estimate that closing the smelter will reduce sulfur dioxide by 42,000 tons and lead by 30 tons per year around the Herculaneum area.
