(CLEVELAND) – Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine today announced a lawsuit against NewKor, Inc., a manufacturing facility on Cleveland’s west side. Emissions from the facility allegedly are causing throat irritation, choking, and nausea for nearby residents.
“Protecting the health and safety of citizens is a priority when it comes to environmental enforcement,” Attorney General DeWine said. “When residents are experiencing nausea and other noticeable problems because of the businesses they live near, something needs to be done. Our goal is to bring this facility into compliance and to protect residents’ health.”
Gordon L. Barr owns and operates NewKor at 10410 Berea Road in Cleveland. The facility produces paper roller tubes and results in various emissions, some of which are hazardous air pollutants, including methanol, phenol, and formaldehyde. This contributes to strong odors coming from the facility.
Since 2008, the Cleveland Division of Air Quality has received complaints about the facility’s odors and has conducted numerous inspections of the facility. The lawsuit alleges that NewKor and Barr knew about the emissions problems but failed to correct them, even after agreeing to administrative orders with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA). Specifically, the lawsuit, filed in the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court, charges NewKor and Barr with multiple violations of Ohio’s air pollution control regulations and nuisance laws. The State is seeking compliance with emissions requirements, elimination of the odors, civil penalties, and other costs.
The Ohio Attorney General’s Office filed the lawsuit at the request of the Ohio EPA after it was unable to convince Barr and NewKor to correct the violations.
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Documents
Lawsuit
Media Contacts
Dan Tierney: 614-466-3840
Kate Hanson: 614-466-3840