Alabama Officials Offer Cash to Homeowners in Path of Toxic Plume

By Christy Burns

Published on February 28, 2007

Decades ago, ALDOT used trichloroethylene, also known as TCE, as a solvent. Before it began to be regulated in the mid-1980s, the recommended method of disposal for TCE was to put it on the ground to evaporate, or dump it in sewers. Once the serious dangers of TCE were fully realized, ALDOT gradually phased it out of use.

Unfortunately, the years of improper disposal have left a swath of contaminated groundwater that is expected to continue growing for at least 30 more years. In an attempt to avoid a monumental legal battle, ALDOT is now offering to pay approximately 600 property owners around the Highland Gardens, Garden Square, and Montgomery Business Park neighborhoods.

The payments, expected to reach nearly $4.5 million, will be based on 5.1 percent of the 2006 value of each property. In 2005, ALDOT reached a $5.5 million settlement in a suit with more than 1,500 additional residents affected by the plume.

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