Class Action Alleges New Indy Containerboard Abandoned Previous Owner’s Commitment to Pollution Control

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A Catawba, South Carolina containerboard producer has allegedly pivoted from the previous business owner’s commitment to pollution control and sent into the air dangerous pollutants that can be smelled within a 30-mile radius. 

A 16-page proposed class action alleges New-Indy Catawba LLC, doing business as New Indy Containerboard, has, since its conversion from a paper mill to a producer of virgin containerboard last year, stopped sending “foul condensate” to a steam stripper and incinerator and instead sent pollutants to open-air lagoons, such that hydrogen sulfide and other dangerous contaminants evaporate into the air. 

The result, according to the complaint, is an “eight- or ninefold” increase in the amount of foul condensate piped into the open-air lagoons. Those living and working within a 30-mile radius of the mill—which at the end of 2018 was bought by the defendant, a joint venture between Schwarz Partners LP and The Kraft Group, LLC, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s holding company—have filed a mountain of complaints about strong, foul odors resembling hydrogen sulfide, the lawsuit says. 

Once its conversion to producing containerboard was complete, New Indy began high-volume production in February 2021, the case states. Per the suit, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC), in response to “an unprecedented number of complaints” about the odors, immediately began an investigation. As of May 7, 2021, the DHEC has received more than 17,000 complaints of noxious odors linked to New Indy Containerboard, the lawsuit says. Also on that day, the DHEC determined that the smell wafting into nearby areas is “injurious to the welfare and quality of life and is interfering with the use and enjoyment of property,” and ordered New Indy to remedy the unlawful air pollution, the suit relays. 

Nearly a week later, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency weighed in, issuing an emergency order under the Clean Air Act for New Indy to remedy the unlawful air pollution at the Catawba mill, the lawsuit says. According to the complaint, the EPA stated that an emergency order was necessary given New Indy’s actions were “so harmful to public health and welfare” that it was not practicable to wait for legal action at the district court level. 

The case says, however, that air quality in the area near the mill was not a problem prior to New Indy’s acquisition and conversion of the facility. According to the suit, the DHEC awarded the mill in 2011 the “Spare the Air” outstanding business award for going beyond regulatory requirements in improving air quality. 

The reason for the defendant’s conversion to containerboard production is to maximize profits, even if that means ignoring the previous owner’s commitment to environmental protection, the lawsuit claims:

“New Indy likewise decided to maximize its profits by abandoning the previous Mill owner’s commitment to compliance with air pollution laws and regulations—most obviously, by changing the production process to send all pollutants to open-air lagoons instead of continuing to use specialized equipment to bring pollution levels under the applicable legal limits.” 

According to the suit, inhalation of elevated levels of hydrogen sulfide can cause headaches, nausea, difficulty breathing for those with asthma, and eye, nose and throat irritation. Residents within a 30-mile radius of New Indy have reported a loss of sleep, desire to stay indoors, stress and anxiety, per the suit. Others have reported that odors from the facility are noticeable inside of their homes; that they’ve been woken up at night due to the smell; and that they’ve generally been unable to enjoy their home and community, the case says. 

The lawsuit looks to represent all persons or entities who have or had any beneficial interest in any real property located within 30 miles of the facility at 5300 Cureton Ferry Road, South Carolina 29704 from February 1, 2021 through the present.

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