MAINE SETTLES CASE AGAINST IRONITE

December 24, 2002

DECEMBER 23, 2002

CONTACT:
DENNIS HARNISH, ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL
207-626-8800

Attorney General Steven Rowe announced today that his office has reached a settlement in a suit brought in April of this year against Ironite Products Company (IPC), the makers of Ironite, which is a soil supplement made from byproducts of an Arizona mining operation. Ironite was sold in Maine stores as a soil amendment until the Attorney General brought this lawsuit.

The suit alleged that IPC failed to obtain from the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) the permit required for selling fertilizer made from or containing solid waste. The DEP application process is intended to insure the safety of the product.

The settlement requires IPC to withhold Ironite from the Maine market unless it proves to DEP or a Maine court that the product is either safe to use or is not made from solid waste.

Attorney General Rowe said, "The DEP and the State Toxicologist have expressed serious concerns about the metals in Ironite. I am pleased that we were able to work together to keep Ironite out of Maine until those concerns are put to rest."