(Radio Iowa) – The U-S Environmental Protection Agency has ended its oversight of clean-up at the eastern Iowa recycling facility that exploded in late 2022. Asphalt shingles were being recycled at the C-six-zero plant in Marengo. Twenty employees were injured and part of Marengo had to be evacuated when the plant exploded. Six months later, after delays in the timeline for clean-up, state officials asked the federal government to start overseeing the removal of contaminated water and soil from the site.

Marengo fire (file photo)

Officials in the Iowa Department of Natural Resources will review the E-P-A’s final report and determine if the company should do more hazardous material clean up. The Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined C-six-zero nearly one-hundred thousand dollars for 15 safety violations. Three employees and an investor who was touring the plant at the time of the explosion also have sued the company.

The State of Iowa has sued the company, as well, seeking one-and-a-half MILLION dollars to cover the cost of cleaning up contaminated water.