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Case ID: 4167 | Environmental | 01/11/2005
A class action lawsuit has been filed in the state circuit court in Collier County, Florida against Orange Tree Utility Co. The lawsuit is brought on behalf of water customers of Orange Tree in the Naples area, who claim that the water fails to meet safe water standards, has an unpleasant appearance, taste and odor, and may cause health problems. The suit alleges that Orange Tree Utility Co. has consistently ignored consumer complaints about the quality of the water and seeks damages for medical bills, property damage and the cost of extra water filtration devices.
For 12 years, named plaintiff Eugenia Pickard drank the water that came out of the taps at her Orange Tree home. That stopped the day the notice arrived from Orange Tree Utility Co. last fall. The notice said that tests of the utility's water found violations of safe drinking water standards for two chemicals that are a byproduct of the disinfection process and could pose health problems. In December, the utility received permission from the Collier County Water and Wastewater Authority to raise its water service base charge by 40 percent. That's when Pickard went to court. "I just decided somebody had to take a stand," Pickard, 55, said. "This isn't fair. This isn't right." Orange Tree's customers include residents of Twin Eagles, Orange Tree, Waterways, Valencia Lakes, Citrus Greens and homes on 33rd Avenue. The utility also serves Corkscrew Elementary School, Corkscrew Middle School and Palmetto Ridge High School. Some people who drink water with too many THMs over many years might experience problems with their livers, kidneys or central nervous systems and might have an increased risk of cancer, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In a notice to its customers last September, the utility questioned the validity of the water test results, saying only that there was a "possible problem." The DEP fined the utility $750 for sending out an inadequate notice. Since then, the DEP has fined the utility again — $4,500 for having low residual chlorine levels in drinking water at Twin Eagles. At Lawcash.com, it is our goal to keep you informed about important legal cases, class actions and settlements. Our lawyers offer free legal evaluations in tort cases, class actions, personal injury, and other lawsuits because we are dedicated to helping you resolve your legal complaints. Other Environmental Cases of Interest Eleven homeowners along the Delaware River filed a class action lawsuit against PPL Corporation over the massive coal ash spill in August of 2005. The lawsuit was filed in Pennsylvania's Commonwealth Court, and claims that PPL was "negligent, reckless and created a public nuisance following the massive failure of a 40-acre settling basin at the power company's Martins Creek plant over three days at the end of August."
In 2000, California Supreme Court ruled that workers must get paid for compulsory travel time. The court has rendered a $13+ million and verdict in a class-action filed against D'Arrigo Brothers Company on behalf of laborers, who alleged that the company failed to pay them for thousands of hours spent traveling on company vans to and from the crops they picked between 1996 and 2000. The money will not be distributed until all possible appeals have been exhausted. A group of law firms collectively filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of individuals and businesses in and around Apex, North Carolina against EQ Industrial Services and EQ Holding Company. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters filed a class-action lawsuit alleging that Nashville's Middle Metro Police department has neglected the police officers' pension fund by going six years without a performance audit to show how investments have performed. Groundwater and soil contamination from leaking underground fuel tanks poses an extraordinary carcinogenic danger to the U.S. population. The parties have reached a tentative settlement in an action filed against the Exxon Corporation on behalf of all persons who own property in South Carolina that might have been contaminated with petroleum products released into the environment from equipment owned or operated by Exxon or from Exxon service stations. Eligible owners of property in South Carolina (who don't have to be SC residents) should contact the class attorneys for information regarding participation in the settlement.
A class action has been filed against El Dupont, Incorporated and several of its affiliates for environmental contamination. The plaintiffs allege that their properties have been invaded by, and that they have been exposed to, hazardous substances released as a result of El Dupont's conduct at the former zinc production facility known as the Spelter Smelter facility in Harrison County, West Virginia and seek compensatory and punitive damages and the establishment of a medical monitoring program to diagnose diseases associated with the exposure of hazardous substances. |
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