The Campbell Soup Co. has been sued by the U.S. Dept. of Justice, alleging that a company facility has been releasing wastewater with bacteria, phosphorus and other contaminants at concentrations above allowed limits into a river that leads to Lake Erie. The government claims that the Campbell’s Napoleon, Ohio, plant has violated permitted pollution limits thousands of times since 2018. The plant processes soup and beverages.
The DOJ lawsuit came only a few hours after a similar lawsuit was filed against the company by two environmental groups, and according to a Reuters report, it was expected the two suits would be combined into one. The lawsuits are asking the court to assess fines for more than 5,000 violations, which could cost as much as $64,618 each, and to force Campbell’s to upgrade the plant’s wastewater treatment facility.
Other than E. coli and phophorus, the lawsuits claim oil and grease, and dissolved oxygen and nitrogen levels exceed allowances.
The Napoleon plant discharges into the Maumee River, which then flows through the city of Toledo and into Lake Erie. A Campbell’s spokesperson told Reuters that the company takes the concerns very seriously and is working to resolve the concerns permanently.
