Thread by @TexasTribune

1/ A retired Texas shrimper became a scrappy environmental activist and won a $50 million settlement from a plastics manufacturer giant.

It’s the largest citizen suit settlement in U.S. history.
bit.ly/34ReRTI

2/ In 2017, Diane Wilson filed a lawsuit alleging that a Formosa plant had illegally discharged thousands of plastic pellets and pollutants into nearby waterways.

She spent years painstakingly collecting waste to prove it in court. bit.ly/34QjbCN

3/ The plastics manufacturer giant argued that a $121,875 fine from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality made the lawsuit moot.

In a June ruling, U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt said "Not so." bit.ly/2rT3HPI

4/ The judge approved the settlement a few months after saying Formosa was in "enormous" violation of its state-issued permits.

He also said the commission was either unwilling or unable to bring the company into compliance. bit.ly/2rT3HPI

5/ The settlement will be poured into a trust for programs supporting pollution mitigation, habitat restoration, and other environmental efforts.

If Formosa is found in violation again, they’ll have to pay additional fines starting at $10,000. bit.ly/34ReRTI

6/ Formosa said they have also agreed to:

• install holding ponds to contain stormwater on the property
• improve its stormwater drainage systems
• comply with “zero discharge” of all plastics in the future
• clean up existing pollution
bit.ly/34ReRTI

7/7 “Formosa polluted Lavaca Bay and nearby waterways for years. Now it will pay for strong community projects that will improve the health and welfare of our waterways and beaches,” Wilson said. bit.ly/34ReRTI