Dive Brief:
- Exide Technologies announced it will shutter its battery recycling plant in Vernon, CA, as part of a deal reached to avoid criminal charges.
- The recycler entered into the agreement with federal prosecutors. Terms of the agreement include admitting criminal conduct, which includes the illegal storage and transportation of hazardous waste.
- In order to avoid prosecution, the company agreed to close the Vernon facility, demolish the structure, and clean the 15-acre site.
Dive Insight:
In 2012, Exide agreed to close its facility in Frisco, TX, following a string of disputes involving state officials. Also in 2012, Exide announced it would idle its operations at its Reading, PA, facility beginning March 31, 2013, as the result of numerous factors, including regulatory requirements and fluctuations in the lead market.
The Vernon plant is one of only two battery recycling plants on the West Coast. The plant allegedly released lead, arsenic, cadmium and other toxic metals into the environment, according to state records.
The agreement will allow the company to continue its operations in Missouri and Indiana. The company has entered into Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with intentions to surface as a reorganized company.
