Arizona v. Components Inc.

Plaintiff-intervenor, Components Incorporated (“Components”), appeals the district court’s approval of a settlement agreement between the State of Arizona (“the State”) and Nucor Corporation (“Nucor”) resolving Nucor’s liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA”), 42 U.S.C. § 9607 et seq., for contaminated ground water found within the West Central Phoenix State Superfund Study Area (“Study Area”). The district court’s order is reported under State of Arizona ex rel. Woods v. Nucor Corporation, 825 F.Supp. 1452 (D.Ariz.1992). Both Nucor and Components were past owners and operators of electronics manufacturing facilities in the Study Area. Components challenges the settlement agreement on the ground that the State and the district court lacked sufficient information regarding the extent of the contamination, the probable total cost of cleanup, and a reasonable basis for determining Nucor’s share of liability to approve the consent decree. In addition, Components contends that the settlement violates CERCLA because it offered Nucor an unconditional release from all future liability without providing for any reopener…