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Weed Killer Class Action Lawsuit Settled

Michael Agruss

Written and Reviewed by Michael Agruss

  • Managing Partner and Personal Injury Lawyer at 844SeeMike.
  • Over 20 years of experience in Personal Injury.
  • Graduated from the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law: Juris Doctor, 2004.

Weed Killer Class Action Lawsuit Settled

A settlement has finally been reached in a giant class-action lawsuit over weed-killer; Sygenta has agreed to pay $105 million, to be divided up by community water systems that sustain more than 37 million Americans, mostly in farming states. Over 1,000 communities have spent millions of dollars over many years filtering atrazine, a common agricultural herbicide, out of their drinking water.

Syngenta, a Swiss-based company, manufactures atrazine, a chemical corn farmers used for decades to kill grasses and broadleaf weeds. Atrazine enters the water shed after a rainstorm, which washes the chemical into streams and rivers, then on to drinking water reservoirs. The class-action suit had been going on for nine years; the plaintiffs, all community water systems from a half-dozen states, claimed claimed atrazine exposure could lead to health problems such as low birth weights, birth defects and reproductive problems. Syngenta responded that no one ever has or ever could be exposed to enough atrazine in water to affect their health. Under the terms of the settlement, the denied any liability or wrongdoing linked to the chemical, which it will continue to sell (and has sold in more than 60 countries, including the U.S., since 1959).

The plaintiffs are mostly satisfied with the settlement, but many said it’s a pittance in comparison to what they’ve already spent removing atrazine from their water sheds. Bill Stowe, chief executive of the Des Moines’ water supplier, said of their share, “this nearly $66,000 certainly doesn’t in our view represent a windfall by any means or does it even begin to represent the cost of years of ridding drinking water of the chemical.” Community water systems from Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Kansas, Missouri and Ohio were involved in the suit, and payments vary from 5,000 to a few million dollars— $3.1 million went to Columbus, Ohio, the biggest sum sent to a single city. Amounts that the eligible water systems will receive hinges on the levels and frequency of atrazine contamination they experienced, and the size of the population they served. 1,887 community water systems, sustaining more than 52 million Americans, were eligible to make a claim; 1,085 participated in the suit.

This Syngenta settlement (which a company spokesman called “old news”), is a welcome step in the ongoing legal struggle to hold companies responsible for dangerous and defective products.

If you or a loved one has been injured by a defective product, contact 844 See Mike, at 312-224-4695 for a free consultation. We are a Chicago personal injury law firm representing individuals and families who have suffered an injury or loss due to an accident. 844 See Mike, will handle your personal injury case quickly, will advise you every step of the way, and will not hesitate to go to trial for you.

Lastly, 844 See Mike, does not get paid attorney’s fees unless we win your case. Our no-fee promise is that simple. Therefore, you have nothing to risk when you hire us–just the opportunity to seek justice.

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