Interfaith Community Org. v. Honeywell Intern.

Page 486

188 F.Supp.2d 486

INTERFAITH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION; Lawrence Baker; Martha Webb Herring; Margaret Webb; Reverend Winston Clarke; Margarita Navas; Hackensack Riverkeeper, Inc., consolidated plaintiff; William Sheehan, consolidated plaintiff; Plaintiffs, v. HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL, INC.; W.R. Grace & Company; ECARG, Inc.; W.R. Grace, Ltd.; Roned Realty of Jersey City, Inc.; Roned Realty of Union City, Inc.; Defendants.

Civil Action No. 95-2097 (DMC).

United States District Court, D. New Jersey.

March 12, 2002.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Edward Lloyd, South Orange, NJ, for Plaintiffs.

William F. Mueller, Clemente, Mueller & Tobia, P.A., Morristown, NJ, John Michael Agnello, Carella, Byrne, Bain, Gilfillan, Cecchi, Stewart & Olstein, Roseland, NJ, David W. Field, Lowenstein, Sandler, PC, Roseland, NJ, for Defendants.

OPINION

CAVANAUGH, District Judge.

This matter is an environmental cause of action involving numerous motions by all parties. In this Opinion, the Court shall address three motions addressing section 7002, 42 U.S.C. § 6972 of the Resource Recovery Conservation Act ("RCRA"). The first motion is by Defendant Honeywell International, Inc. (formerly "AlliedSignal, Inc.") ("Honeywell") to dismiss Plaintiffs' RCRA count in the Amended Complaint for lack of standing. Second, Plaintiffs' Interfaith Community Organization ("Interfaith"), Lawrence Baker, Martha Webb Herring, Margaret Webb, Reverend Winston Clarke and Margarita Navas have cross-moved for partial summary judgment on this same count, seeking to have the Court decide, as a matter of law, that Plaintiffs have standing under RCRA to bring this citizen suit. Third, Defendants W.R. Grace & Company, Ecarg, Inc., and W.R. Grace, Ltd. (collectively "the Grace Defendants") along with Plaintiff Interfaith have moved jointly for partial summary judgment against Honeywell on Plaintiff's RCRA claim, seeking to have this Court conclude, as a matter of law, that not only do Plaintiffs have standing, but that no genuine issues of material fact exist as to Honeywell's liability under RCRA.¹ Having decided to address these motions together, the Court's Opinion will first focus on the issue of standing and then turn to whether partial summary judgment is warranted against Honeywell with regard to Plaintiffs' RCRA claim.

The Court, having meticulously reviewed the submissions of all parties regarding the three motions described above, and for the reasons stated in this Opinion, holds that Defendant Honeywell's motion to dismiss for lack of standing is denied. Further, Plaintiff Interfaith's motion for partial summary judgment on the issue of standing to bring a citizen suit under RCRA is granted. Lastly, the joint motion by Interfaith and the Grace Defendants seeking to establish Honeywell's liability under RCRA as a matter of law is denied.

BACKGROUND

The Court's "Background" section adopts a substantial portion of the facts stated in a prior opinion in this case insofar as they remain accurate. See Interfaith Community Organization v. Allied-Signal, Inc., 928 F.Supp. 1339 (D.N.J. 1996).

The Parties

This is an action brought by Plaintiffs Interfaith Community Organization ("Interfaith"), Lawrence Baker ("Baker"), Martha Webb Herring ("Herring"), Margaret Webb ("Webb"), Reverend Winston Clarke ("Clarke") and Margarita Navas ("Navas") (collectively the "Plaintiffs") against Defendants Honeywell International, Inc. ("Honeywell"), Roned Realty of Jersey City, Inc. and Roned Realty of Union City, Inc. (together "Roned") and W.R. Grace & Co. ("Grace USA"), ECARG, Inc. ("ECARG") and W.R. Grace, Ltd. ("Grace England") (together "Grace Companies") (collectively the "Defendants") seeking declaratory and injunctive relief mandating the cleanup of environmental contamination at the Roosevelt Drive In site in Jersey City, New Jersey (the "Site").

Interfaith is a not-for-profit corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey. Amended Complaint, ¶ 19. Interfaith alleges its interest in chromium contamination in Hudson County and at the Site arose from its (1) inability to locate non-chromium contaminated land in Hudson County upon which it could construct 600 units of affordable single-family housing and (2) the discovery that member churches were built on land contaminated with chromium. Id., ¶¶ 20-21; Affidavit of Reverend Geoffrey Curtiss ("Curtiss Aff."), ¶¶ 4-5. Members of Interfaith reside and work in the vicinity of the Site, frequently drive by the Site and sometimes shop in stores near the Site. Amended Complaint, ¶ 23. The remaining Plaintiffs described below are all members of Interfaith.

Baker is a member of the Monumental Baptist Church, a member church of Interfaith, and lives approximately two miles from the Site. Id., ¶ 26; Affidavit of Lawrence Baker ("Baker Aff."), ¶ 1. From March 1973 through May 1990, Baker worked approximately one-half mile from the Site. Amended Complaint, ¶ 26; Baker Aff., ¶ 7. From the summer of 1991 through mid-1993, Baker worked as a security guard on property adjoining the Site. Amended Complaint, ¶ 26; Baker Aff., ¶ 2. During this period, Baker alleges that he observed "a greenish/yellowish ooze" on the site, usually after rainfall. Amended Complaint, ¶ 26; Baker Aff., ¶ 3. Mr. Baker's employment requires him to use the Jersey City Authority gas pumps adjacent to the Site once or twice a month. Amended Complaint, ¶ 26. Baker considers the Site a "blight on the neighborhood." Id., ¶ 27.

Herring and Webb are members of the Monumental Baptist Church that claim to live within one-quarter mile of the Site. Id., ¶¶ 28, 30. Herring and Webb have both worked and shopped in locations on or near the Site, such as the Pathmark supermarket located approximately one block from the Site and the Valley Fair store, a former retail establishment located on the Site. Id. Like Baker, Herring asserts the Site's present condition adversely affects her aesthetic interests. Id., ¶¶ 29, 31.

Clarke is an individual member of Interfaith and lives less than one-quarter mile from the Site. Id., ¶ 32. Clarke also claims to shop regularly at the Pathmark supermarket near the Site. Id. Clarke asserts that he has paid membership fees to Interfaith since 1994 and is concerned about the health risks associated with chromium near his home. Third Affidavit of Reverend Winston Clarke, ¶¶ 3, 7, 8. Clarke also has expressed a concern that the chromium contamination in Hudson County has had a negative impact on the value of his property. While Interfaith did not provide for individual membership until November 1999, Clarke has regularly participated in Interfaith meetings since 1994 and has since possessed voting authority within the organization. Curtiss Aff., ¶ 9.

In August 1991, Navas moved into a condominium located less than one-quarter mile from the Site. Amended Complaint, ¶ 34. Eight months later, in April 1992, Navas was diagnosed with sarcoidosis, a rare disease that affects the organs of the body and causes pain in the chest, back and joints. Affidavit of Margarita Navas ("Navas Aff."), ¶ 3. Navas is concerned that her condition may be caused or aggravated, at least in part, by the chromium waste near her home. See id., ¶ 6; Amended Complaint, ¶ 34. Navas also alleges that her current exposure to the Site includes shopping at the Parkmark supermarket a few times a week. Id., ¶ 35.

Honeywell, previously named AlliedSignal, Inc. ("AlliedSignal"), is incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware. Id., ¶ 38. Mutual Chemical Company of America ("Mutual"), a prior subsidiary of AlliedSignal, owned and operated a chromate chemical production facility across the street from the Site from approximately 1905 to 1954. Id. The Site was used during this time to dispose of chrome ore residue from the chromate plant. In 1954, Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation acquired Mutual and sold the Site to Amy Joy Realty Corporation for the construction of a drive-in movie theater. Id. In March 1955, Allied Chemical and Dye Corporation executed a merger agreement with Mutual and thereby agreed to exonerate, indemnify and hold Mutual harmless against all future liability. Id. A few years later, the merged company changed its name to the Allied Corporation and through a merger with Signal Companies, Inc. in 1985, became AlliedSignal, Inc. Id. AlliedSignal, Inc. and Honeywell, Inc. merged in the latter half of 1999 to become Honeywell International, Inc. Grace-USA is a corporation formed under the laws of the State of Connecticut. Id., ¶ 41. Grace-England is a direct subsidiary of Grace USA with a registered office in London, England. Id. ECARG is a New Jersey corporation and a subsidiary of W.R. Grace & Co. Id. Grace-USA and Grace-England were the sole stockholders of Grace Retail Corporation ("Grace Retail"), which acquired two parcels of land constituting the largest portion of the Site. Id., ¶ 42. In November 1986, the Channel Acquisition Company ("Channel") acquired Grace Retail and pursuant to a letter agreement, Grace Retail was to distribute some of its assets, including its portion of the Site, to Grace USA and Grace England. Id., ¶ 43. This transfer, however, never occurred. Id. Nevertheless, Grace USA and Grace England were unaware the transfer did not occur and acted as owners of the parcels until October 14, 1994. Id. On October 14, 1994, then-owner Channel conveyed the parcels to ECARG. Id., ¶ 44.

Roned Realty of Jersey City and Roned Realty of Union City are corporations incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey. Id., ¶ 45. The records of the Jersey City Assessor's Office list a Roned Realty Corp. as the owner of a subdivided parcel of the Site. Id., ¶ 45. It is unclear if the owner is either Roned Realty of Jersey City or Roned Realty of Union City. Id.

Chromium Contamination at the Site

At present, the Site is 32.2 acres of paved land enclosed by a chain link fence. See Declaration of Michael Caffrey,...