Whirlpool Rep To Give Update To Ft. Smith Directors

Jeff Noel, a spokesman from Whirlpool, will be presenting a quarterly report at the Ft. Smith Board of Directors' meeting Tuesday, May 12.  He will be addressing the ongoing efforts re- garding cleanup of contamination at the company's former plant located on Jenny Lind Road.  A toxic substance, trichloroethylene, was discovered in soil and groundwater at the plant and also underneath a neighborhood to the north of the plant.  The facility was closed in 2012.

Whirlpool worked with the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality for several years concerning the issue.  In December of 2013, the DEQ gave the company the ok for a cleanup plan that addressed the contamination situation.  In 2014, according to Whirlpool, there has been more than a 50% decrease of TCE concentrations in some areas after soil was removed and groundwater received chemical treatment. 

A settlement was reached in April with plaintiffs of a proposed class-action lawsuit, whose property loss value due to the contamination.

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