Bayer said on Monday that its Monsanto unit will pay at least $133 million to settle claims from Michigan and Rhode Island alleging contamination of natural resources with toxic chemicals linked to serious health risks.
The company will pay Michigan a minimum of $108 million and Rhode Island at least $25 million to help cover cleanup costs tied to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The settlements are the latest in a string of agreements reached with U.S. states over legacy PCB pollution claims. With these deals, Bayer has now settled PCB-related cases with 12 U.S. states, including recent agreements with Illinois and West Virginia finalized in December.
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Bayer said its Monsanto unit, which manufactured PCBs between 1935 and 1977, agreed to the settlements without admitting any wrongdoing, adding that the deals are intended to resolve longstanding liabilities tied to the chemicals.
PCBs were once widely used in electrical insulation equipment and appeared in products including carbonless copy paper, caulking materials, floor finishes, and paint. The U.S. government banned the chemicals in 1979 after studies linked them to cancer and other serious health risks.
Bayer also said the total settlement value could increase depending on the outcome of a lawsuit filed in 2023 against six companies that purchased PCBs from Monsanto. The company alleges those businesses violated agreements requiring them to indemnify Monsanto against PCB-related liabilities. The case is still pending in federal court in Missouri.
Rhode Island could receive up to an additional $50 million, while Michigan may secure as much as $176 million in contingent payments under the settlement agreements.
The attorneys general of Michigan and Rhode Island said on Monday that the funds will be used to tackle PCB contamination affecting water sources, soil, and wildlife across the two states.
“This settlement directly supports our efforts to hold corporations accountable for the pollution caused by their products and ensures that we have the resources needed to remove these chemicals from our state,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, a Democrat, said in a statement.
Bayer acquired Monsanto in a $63 billion deal in 2018. Since then, the company has faced litigation tied to PCB contamination, along with thousands of lawsuits alleging that its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer claims Bayer continues to deny.
In a statement, Bayer said Monsanto carried out and supported studies on PCB safety and provided customers with warnings that reflected the scientific understanding available at the time.
The company has been hit with lawsuits from municipalities and U.S. states over the environmental damage linked to PCBs, as well as claims from schools and property owners seeking compensation for building contamination. It has also faced lawsuits from individuals alleging that PCB exposure led to serious illnesses. While Bayer has resolved some of these cases through settlements, other lawsuits have ended with substantial jury awards against the company.
