PORTLAND PRESS HERALD • October 1, 2021
In 2000, Maine People’s Alliance and the Natural Resources Defense Council sued Mallinckrodt US LLC over mercury contamination in the Penobscot River from the former HoltraChem site in Orrington. The company owned the chemical plant between 1967 and 1982. After two trials and multiple scientific studies, the parties finally reached a settlement agreement earlier this year. Under the proposal, Mallinckrodt would pay $187 million for primary remediation measures and long-term monitoring of the river, plus an additional $80 million in contingency funds. U.S. District Judge John Woodcock will hear three days of testimony and public comment in Bangor before he decides whether to approve the agreement.