By KWMU
St. Louis, MO – Missouri attorney general Jay Nixon filed suit against Ameren UE on Wednesday. The lawsuit comes a day before the anniversary of last years breach at the Taum Sauk reservoir and one day after the Missouri DNR proposed a settlement.
Nixon is asking that the state's largest utility company be ordered to pay compensation and punitive damages for its alleged action and negligence that resulted in the last year's catastrophe.
"Folks, lets not kid ourselves," said Nixon, "this was a very dangerous situation-over a billion gallons of water over a well-used state park."
"Corporations that do that in our state and profit or that need to understand that they pay a penalty."
Nixon's lawsuit came a day after the Missouri D-N-R announced it had offered a settlement over civil claims involving the reservoir failure. Nixon says that DNR's offer doesn't go far enough.
"The DNR is a permitting agency," said Nixon, "they are permitting people to move dirt from one place to another but as far as bringing civil actions to deal with the penalties that should be appropriated and the restoration and complicated insurance issues that are involved you need a lot more then some permitting agency to get that done, that's why you have an attorney general that's why we're doing what we're doing."
Ameren CEO Gary Rainwater expressed disappointment over the lawsuit, he says the company has been meeting with state officials since April to settle all liabilities.
Rainwater says that failure to resolve the states claims will further delay rebuilding of the Taum Sauk facility.