ELR Citation: ELR 20645
No(s). 90-102-C (N.D. W. Va. Jan 14, 1993)

The court holds that a corporation's sale of electrical transformers contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) did not constitute an arrangement for the disposal of hazardous substances under §107(a)(3)of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). The court finds that the transformers were not at the end of their useful lives or inoperable at the time of sale. Further, the government provided no evidence that the transformers were so contaminated as to be worthless at the time of sale, and the transformers had value and could be sold.

Counsel for Plaintiff
Robin P. Lancaster
Environment and Natural Resources Division
U.S. Department of Justice, Washington DC 20530
(202) 514-2000

Counsel for Defendants
James C. West Jr.
West & Jones
360 Washington Ave., P.O. Box 2348, Clarksburg WV 26302
(304) 624-5501

W. Henry Lawrence
Steptoe & Johnson
Union Nat'l Ctr. E., P.O. Box 2190, Clarksburg WV 26302
(304) 624-8000