Years after pledging to recover cleanup costs from those responsible for spreading lead pollution over thousands of homes in southeast Los Angeles County, California regulators have finally filed suit against multiple companies connected to the closed Exide Technologies battery recycling plant in Vernon. Exide operated the site from 2000 until its 2015 closure, and was responsible for cleaning up the mess left behind. The bill for the cleanup, already more than $250 million, could ultimately approach $650 million, a state auditor’s report estimated. Map shows the cleanup zone around the former Exide plant in Vernon. Gen. Xavier Becerra’s office did not respond to questions about whether it investigated Exide criminally or pursued charges against the company.

Source: Los Angeles Times December 19, 2020 14:04 UTC