A corn plant, Grain Procession Corporation, emits so much pollution that it has damaged homes, cars and property across Iowa City, Iowa.  As a result, 11 residents filed a lawsuit alleging that the plant spews harmful chemicals and matter for miles as the wind blows.  This blankets cars and homes with soot, causing metals in everything from play sets to air conditioning systems to corrode.  The residents are seeking class action status on behalf of the 17,000 residents who live within three miles of the plant.

Not only do residents have to frequently clean their belonging, but they also have to breathe this polluted air on a daily basis.  Residents waited for years for the company to stop air quality violations, but finally decided to file a lawsuit.  The attorney found dangerously high levels of acetaldehyde and sulfuric acid at homes and parks in the area.  The lawsuit claims that the company is negligent in trying to stop the pollution and prevents the residents from enjoying their property.

The lawsuit alleges that the plant emitted excess particulate matter and sulfur dioxide, failed to maintain and repair equipment to stop pollution, failed to obtain construction permits and committed other air and water pollution control violations.  The plaintiffs are seeking civil penalties along with compliance of the law.

A Brazilian federal prosecutor recently launched his second $10.9 billion lawsuit against Chevron and driller Transocean.  This new lawsuit is related to an oil leak discovered on March 4 in Chevron’s Frade field, just Northeast of Rio de Janeiro.  This suit also seeks to prevent Chevron and Transocean from operating in Brazil.

This leak may have damaged the Frade reservoir, making it impossible to produce from the field, denying Brazil its right to royalties on a natural, public resource.  However, Chevron claims the damage is minute, 0.1% of BP’S spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  Furthermore, politicians in Brazil are now worried that this prosecutor will deter oil companies to do business with them.  This industry is vital to their economy as it makes up 10% of GDP.  The monetary damages sought between the two cases are $2 billion more than BP set aside to pay damages for its spill.