DOMTAR INDUSTRIES AGREES TO PAY $35,000 TO SETTLE AIR POLLUTION LAWSUIT

MADISON - Domtar Industries, Inc. of Montreal, Canada, will pay $35,000 for alleged air pollution violations at the company's paper mill in Nekoosa, Wisconsin. The Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ) filed and settled the case following an investigation by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR.)

According to the complaint, filed at the request of the DNR, particulate matter emissions from one of the processes at the mill exceeded DNR-issued permit limits in 2003 and 2004. Domtar subsequently took steps to bring the emissions from the process into compliance with the permit limit, as confirmed by a December, 2004, stack test.

"Under Wisconsin law air quality is protected by emission limits contained in required permits issued by the DNR," Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen said. "The Wisconsin Department of Justice will continue to work with the DNR to enforce the state's environmental laws."

The settlement was approved on September 10, 2007, by Wood County Circuit Court Judge Edward F. Zappen, Jr. Assistant Attorney General Shari Eggleson represented the state.