COBB COUNTY, Ga. — Four more homeowners are now blaming a Smyrna medical sterilization plant for a drop in their property value.
Eric J. Hertz, P.C. Trial Attorneys in Atlanta are taking on the property damage cases. The lawsuits allege the homes' proximity to Sterigenics is not only a health hazard but is ultimately detrimental to their home values.
Documents show that the furthest plaintiff lives 2.7 miles away from the plant located at 2971 Olympic Industrial Dr. SE -- the other three live even closer.
The plant has been under scrutiny for releasing a cancer-causing chemical ethylene oxide into the air for years. Some of the highest readings have been found in Smyrna and Covington, resulting in a wave of lawsuits as children have fallen ill allegedly because of the gas. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has labeled the gas on its list of chemicals that "definitely causes cancer."
As Georgia's facility is believed to endanger the health of residents in its vicinity, more than 100 lawsuits have been filed. This new wave of suits now focuses on the monetary impact of the site's location.
In the Jan. 23 court filings for the Cobb County residents, attorneys cite the Cobb County Board of Tax Assessors devaluing the properties. Appraisers with the county cited the apparent drop in value as partially because of "EPD-identified environment issues" in May 2020, according to tax documents filed within the lawsuits. Attorneys representing the Cobb County residents allege county tax assessors devalued properties by 10% in large part because of the embattled Sterigenics plant nearby.
All four Georgia cases call for a jury trial.
Sterigenics announced on Jan. 9 would settle 870 lawsuits alleging its Willowbrook, Illinois facility exposed residents to the gas and caused illnesses. The settlement is estimated at around $408 million, according to reporting from NBC 5 Chicago.
Last year, EPA officials also required the company's 29 sterilization facilities to report their ethylene oxide releases to the agency. 11Alive has reached out to the EPA for those reports.