$56M Settlement Proposed in Cleanup of Wisconsin’s Fox River

Six companies, the city of Appleton and a sewerage commission have offered to pay a total of $56 million to help with the massive cleanup of contaminants in the Fox River in northeastern Wisconsin.

If a federal judge approves the settlement with state and federal authorities, the entities could be released from claims that they were partly responsible for polluting the river. The pollutants were discharged into the river during manufacturing between 1954 and 1971. The cleanup is estimated to cost $1 billion.

WLUK-TV reports the proposed settlement includes the City of Appleton, the Neenah-Menasha Sewerage Commission, CBC Coating, Menasha Corp., U.S. Paper Mills Corp., WTM 1, Kimberly-Clark and NewPage Corp.

It does not include NCR Corp. and Glatfelter, two companies that have already spent millions on the cleanup so far.