EPA and Rail Company Reach $310M Settlement for 2023 Toxic Ohio Train Crash

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced Thursday a $310 million settlement with Norfolk Southern Railway Company to pay for damages from the derailment of a train carrying toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, in February 2023, as well as for long-term health and environmental monitoring.

The derailment triggered a massive fire that sent plumes of toxic smoke over the town of some 4,700 people in eastern Ohio, forcing evacuations and leaving residents with lingering fears about contamination and health effects from exposure. Fearing a larger explosion, emergency responders allowed a controlled release of some of the toxic cargo, including vinyl chloride.

"I committed to restoring the health and safety of the community and to holding Norfolk Southern accountable, and today we are following through on those commitments," EPA Administrator Michael Regan said in a press briefing announcing the settlement.

Under the settlement, Norfolk Southern will spend an estimated $235 million for cleanup costs, a sum Regan said covered all government expenses, and the company will pay $15 million in civil penalties.

"This is the highest penalty allowed by law under the Clean Water Act," Regan said. However, Department of Justice officials said the company does not admit fault under the settlement.

Norfolk Southern will also pay for long-term monitoring of water and $25 million for a 20-year community health program. That health program will include residents within 2 miles of the derailment or near affected waterways, as well as first responders who worked at the site. The settlement also includes funding for a waterway restoration program for the polluted streams.

Additionally, Regan said, Norfolk Southern agreed to rail safety enhancements that he estimated will cost $200 million. Those measures include addressing some of the issues identified in the accident investigations, such as improved monitoring of wheel bearings to prevent overheating and decreased speed limits.

"Had these been in place, this disaster may never have happened in the first place," Regan said.

Norfolk Southern has suffered a number of other incidents since the disaster in East Palestine, and Congress is considering legislation that would require additional safety changes.

Regan said the company's large market share—it represents about 20 percent of the total rail freight industry in the country—means the safety changes will have a broad impact on the industry's safety performance.

Some residents and lawmakers criticized the Biden administration and the Department of Transportation for a delayed response and poor communication about how the cleanup was handled. Regan said the EPA responded within hours of the derailment and that the agency stands "shoulder to shoulder" with the community.

The EPA settlement follows news earlier this week that a federal judge had approved a $600 million class action settlement on behalf of residents. The amount of the individual payments will largely depend on a resident's proximity to the crash site.

The EPA said it estimates that Norfolk Southern will pay a total of $1 billion to address the contamination caused by the derailment and for safety improvements.

Regan said that more than 177,000 tons of contaminated soil and 69 million gallons of wastewater have been removed from the community. Cleanup work continues more than a year later to remove contamination from area creeks and soil.

The proposed settlement is subject to a comment period and must be approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.