Monsanto beats cities' lawsuits over San Francisco Bay pollution
Source: Reuters
U.S. | Tue Aug 23, 2016 12:27pm EDT
Monsanto beats cities' lawsuits over San Francisco Bay pollution
By Jonathan Stempel
A federal judge has dismissed lawsuits in which the California cities of San Jose, Oakland and Berkeley sought to force Monsanto Co (MON.N) to help pay for reducing PCB contamination to San Francisco Bay.
In a decision late Monday, U.S. District Judge Edward Davila said the cities did not show that Monsanto's sale many decades ago of products containing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) caused a public nuisance that damaged their property rights.
Monsanto, known for its genetically modified crop seeds, was the only U.S. maker of PCBs. It faces lawsuits by at least eight West Coast cities raising similar claims.
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But the San Jose-based judge said stormwater should be considered "public water of the state" under California law, even if it was discharged through manufactured pipes.
"The cities do not take ownership of stormwater merely because it flows through municipal pipes on the way to the bay," Davila wrote. "Therefore, they cannot pursue nuisance claims for damages."
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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-monsanto-california-lawsuits-idUSKCN10Y1N4
