Sterigenics Settles Toxic Emissions Lawsuits For $408M

BURR RIDGE, IL – Sterigenics is paying out $408 million to settle hundreds of lawsuits that alleged it created cancer-causing pollution in suburbs such as Willowbrook, Burr Ridge, Darien, Western Springs and Hinsdale, its parent company announced Monday.

Sotera Health Co. issued a news release stating that it reached agreements to settle more than 870 cases related to the pollutant, ethylene oxide. It was emitted from its Willowbrook plant for decades before it closed three years ago in the face of government investigations.

In its news release, Sotera said it denies liability and that the settlement should not be seen as an admission.

Patrick A. Salvi II, an attorney for the plaintiffs, hailed the settlement Tuesday.

“This agreement represents a remarkable achievement for the Plaintiffs and the people of Willowbrook, who have fought so hard over the past four years," Salvi said in a statement. "Our hope is that hundreds of deserving families will soon be fairly compensated under this agreement and will avoid both the uncertainty of trial and the risk that their cases might be delayed for years, if not decades.”

Sotera said its Willowbrook operations did not pose a safety risk to residents. And the company said it would have ultimately prevailed with the science and evidence.

In September, a Cook County jury determined that Sterigenics was liable to Willowbrook resident Sue Kamuda for developing breast cancer. Kamuda, who lived a half mile away from Sterigenics' medical sterilization plant, was awarded $363 million.

In its release Monday, Sotera said it decided to settle because of "biased" media coverage, the high costs of posting a bond to support an appeal of the Kamuda verdict, and the time and expense in dealing with the lawsuits.

"As we have done consistently throughout our history, we will continue to operate our facilities in compliance with applicable rules and regulations and best industry practices to ensure the safety of our employees, the communities in which we operate and patients around the world," Sotera said in the news release.

Data reported by the company to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency showed the Willowbrook census tract was in the 99.9th percentile for cancer risk in the country, plaintiffs' attorneys said.

The EPA study pointed to Sterigenics’ ethylene oxide emissions as a potential cause, prompting public outrage.

Kamuda, who is in her 70s, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007 and went through surgery and several rounds of chemotherapy and radiation to treat her illness, attorneys said. Kamuda, who moved to Willowbrook with her husband in 1985, is in remission, her lawyer said last year.

The couple moved to the area less than a year after Sterigenics began operations in the community.

Despite the company's recent statement, a former Sterigenics CEO testified in the Kamuda trial that he knew ethylene oxide was dangerous when he stepped into the leadership role in 2011, but never issued directives to tighten up inconsistent emissions controls across Sterigenics' facilities.

He added the company could have reduced emissions back in the early 2000s.

In 2021, the EPA's inspector general released a report critical of the agency's handling of Sterigenics. It alleged the agency withheld information from residents about ethylene oxide emissions from Sterigenics.