Jury Rules Bayer (Monsanto) Must Pay $100M in Trial Over PCBs in Washington School.
Bayer has been ordered to pay $100 million to four individuals who claim they suffered health issues due to exposure to toxic PCB chemicals produced by Monsanto, which were utilized in light fixtures at a school in the Seattle area.
However, a Washington state jury determined that Bayer was not liable for the injuries claimed by 11 other plaintiffs. This verdict, reached after a two-month trial, adds to a series of legal setbacks for Bayer concerning alleged contamination at the Sky Valley Education Center in Monroe, Washington.
Previous trials related to the contamination at this school, involving various groups of plaintiffs, have resulted in verdicts exceeding $1.5 billion, although some of these amounts have been reduced or overturned. PCBs were extensively used in the past for insulating electrical equipment and were found in products such as caulking, floor finishes, and paints.
However, they were banned by the U.S. government in 1979 due to their association with cancer and other health issues. Monsanto, which Bayer acquired in 2018, manufactured PCBs from 1935 to 1977. Bayer contends that the plaintiffs have not successfully demonstrated that their injuries were caused by PCBs and asserts that the levels detected in the school were considered safe by the Environmental Protection Agency.
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