BOSTON, MA (FEBRUARY 21, 2025) – Veolia North America (VNA) today announced it has reached a $53 million settlement with the State of Michigan and approximately 26,000 individual claimants. This milestone effectively ends all current and future litigation against the company in connection with its short consulting work in Flint including litigation filed by both individuals and Michigan’s Attorney General. When combined with prior settlements, VNA will have contributed $79.3 million to the settlement fund for the benefit of the people of Flint and to resolve these cases on a global basis.
“VNA stands behind its good work in Flint. The only jury who had to consider the facts and hear the truth did not find any evidence to say otherwise” said VNA in a statement, referring to the nearly six-month long trial held in 2022, which ended in a mistrial.
“For the past eight years, we have been defending our work and our reputation against baseless attacks. As the facts of the 2022 trial clearly demonstrate, the Flint water crisis was caused by government officials. It is a disgrace that nearly a decade plus since the crisis was set in motion, still no person who was actually responsible has been held accountable. This final settlement is in no way an admission of responsibility, but the best resolution to avoid decades of costly, unproductive, and time-consuming litigation, and to bring closure for all parties involved.”
A previous settlement with the Flint Water Litigation Class was reached in February 2024 for an amount of $25 million, in addition to a settlement with 883 individual minor claimants worth $1.3 million. The prior settlement, approved by the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan last October, covered claims on behalf of more than 45,000 claimants.
“With this litigation now behind us, we at VNA will continue to fulfill our mission of providing clean water to millions of customers across the country and doing our part to tackle climate change, reduce pollution and promote conservation of our air, land, and water.”
From day one, VNA has rejected the numerous false claims and false allegations made against the company based on the clear facts:
- The City of Flint hired VNA as a consultant 10 months after the switch to Flint River water.
- VNA was hired to conduct a one-week assessment focused on addressing carcinogens, not lead.
- VNA played no role in the operation of the Flint Water Treatment Plant.
- Government officials gave VNA test results showing that Flint’s water complied with all applicable standards for lead.
- Federal, state, and city officials all knew that another lead test showed shockingly high lead-levels at one Flint residence, but they hid this information from VNA – just as they hid it from the people of Flint.
- VNA made important recommendations, including a crucial one on corrosion control, that City officials should have implemented.
- Unfortunately, those recommendations were almost entirely ignored by the government officials.
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Media Contact:
Mark Fisk
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