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United States, Colorado, Shattuck settle

Release Date: 12/12/2001
Contact Information:
Marion Galant CDPHE 692 3304

Denver -- Shattuck Chemical Company will pay more than $7.2 million to offset the costs of cleaning up the Shattuck Superfund Site in Denver. The requirement is in a settlement agreement reached by the state and federal governments and Shattuck in a proposed consent decree. The U.S. Department of Justice, the Colorado Attorney General's Office and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment lodged the decree in U.S. District Court in Denver today. There will be a 30-day public comment period on the consent decree, which will not become final until approved by the court. The settlement addresses only reimbursement of the federal and state governments. The cleanup will continue whether or not the agreement is approved.

The company will pay the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) $5,450,000 in cash. When the Shattuck property is sold, EPA also will receive the net proceeds. The settlement requires Shattuck to pay $1.5 million to the State of Colorado for environmental damage the site may have caused and for reimbursement of state response costs. The U.S. Department of Interior will receive $250,000 for potential damage to federal natural resources. These funds are in addition to the $26 million that Shattuck spent to implement the 1992 remedy.

Upon lodging of the consent decree, Shattuck grants EPA complete and unrestricted access to the Shattuck property thereby avoiding a long and costly battle over access and allowing the monolith removal to occur without delay. The property will be deeded to a trust. The trustee will sell the property, and net sale proceeds will further offset the governments’ costs

The settlement provides funds to reduce EPA and state costs for cleanup of the site. It covers the removal of radionuclide contaminated materials and groundwater monitoring. The settlement ends the Shattuck Chemical Company’s involvement with the site unless new information shows that contamination is more serious or it becomes necessary to treat contaminated groundwater. Then additional actions may be taken against the company.

The S. W. Shattuck Chemical facility operated from 1917 to 1984. The company processed various minerals and other materials, including tungsten and carnotite ores (for uranium salts and vanadium salts), radium slimes, molybdenum ores and depleted uranium. The Shattuck Site is designated as Operable Unit #8 of the Denver Radium Site. EPA placed the Denver Radium Site on the Superfund National Priorities List on September 8, 1983.

The Department of Justice and the State of Colorado will each receive public comments on the proposed consent decree. The comment period will be announced in the Federal Register. Text of the consent decree can be found on EPA/Region 8's web page www.epa.gov/region8. The consent decree also is available at the Denver Public Library’s Deckers Branch, 1501 S. Logan Street, the EPA Superfund Record Center, 999 18th Street, and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment Record Center, 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South, Building B2.

Those wishing to comment on the consent decree should submit their comments in writing to the Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Denver Field Office, 999 18th St., Suite 945 NT, Denver, CO 80202, and should reference United States and the State of Colorado v. The S.W. Shattuck Chemical Company, Inc., D.J. Ref. 90-11-2-741/1. Comments should also be sent simultaneously to Robert J. Eber, Colorado Attorney General’s Office, 1525 Grant St., Fifth Floor, Denver, CO 80203

Additional contacts for this story:
Michael Risner, EPA 303 312 6890
Rob Henneke, EPA 303 312 6734
Marion Galant, CDPHE 303 692 3304
Ken Lane, Colo. AGO 303 866 5632