Wisconsin Takes Action
Given the fact that it would take approximately 1,200 years for the ex-CEO of 5R Processors to reimburse $2 million in abandonment restitution as per court order, Wisconsin legislators have decided to also allocate an additional $2 million out of public funds to resolve the problem.
In the past three months, progress has been made on cleaning up several former 5R sites in Wisconsin. However, after remediation efforts were put into action, new information regarding hazardous materials hidden at the former 5R sites has been uncovered.
Because of the new discoveries, the total cost for taxpayers has grown.
Headquartered in Ladysmith, Wis., 5R operated premises across Wisconsin and had an establishment in Tennessee as well. According to reports from federal processors, the company was found to have stored large amounts of CRT materials and other e-scrap without declaring it, and violated tax laws.
Having gone through the legal process, two of the former company leaders have paid for their offenses with prison sentences. The ex-CEO is still imprisoned while appealing his court-imposed 33-month incarceration.
Veolia Contracted to Clean 5R Sites
As the cleanups continue, Veolia ES Technical Solutions is currently carrying out a state hazardous waste contract to manage the 5R sites. Examining earlier projects, Veolia discovered a combination of debris such as CRT glass, toner cartridges, light bulbs, herbicides, lead-acid batteries and more.
Although recycling was attempted, it wasn’t possible to recover all the materials. Natasha Gwidt, the field operations director for Waste and Materials Management Program at Wisconsin’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR), spoke to E-Scrap News about their efforts. She commented that “we did try to recycle as much as we could.”
Gwidt recently reported that Veolia, which holds a four-year contract with the state of Wisconsin to provide hazardous waste services, had just finished cleaning up sites in Rusk County. The work began early this year and was completed several months later.
Altogether, four sites in two different areas were remediated for an estimated cost of $800,000, according to her report. This included a site located in Glen Flora as well as three separate areas situated in Ladysmith.
In total, Veolia disposed of more than 800,000 pounds of CRT glass. This included 124,000 pounds of waste in the form of mixed electronics, items containing hazardous substances like lamps, pesticides and refrigerant-filled components, and additional drums filled with CRT glass.
Many Involved in Cleanup Efforts
In Janesville, Wis., URT recycled most of the CRT glass from end-of-life electronics, as evidenced by state records. Additionally, Veolia sent different components to outside downstream processors. However, it handled the recycling process for other materials at its own facility, Veolia e-scrap, in Port Washington, Wis.
Gwidt noted that the condition of the sites ultimately impacted expenses. As an example, when personnel attempted to transfer semi-truck trailers full of material to process it, the trailers disintegrated. Also, a storehouse loading dock had to be worked on for the crews to be able to safely operate forklifts on it.
Price and Rusk County Majorly Impacted
Veolia is also currently working on another project. According to Gwidt, this task involves the cleaning up of a warehouse and trailers located in Catawba, a village within Price County, which sits east of Rusk County. This endeavor began on June 12th, and Gwidt predicts that it will take roughly four months to complete.
At Catawba, 5R had been engaged in a processing project. However, due to how the materials were tightly packed and arranged in stacks, it’s difficult for officials to determine exactly which items are present, until further progress is made.
In March, Price County foreclosed on the Catawba property and consequently became its public owner. Due to this change of ownership, Rusk and Price counties have been able to access state funding for these sites. Until after foreclosure, however, Veolia was unable to sign a contract with Wisconsin that allowed it to carry out cleanup procedures.
She mentioned that because of its leaky roof, damp material and ruined gaylords, which are not prepared for transport, extra clean-up expenses will have to be considered regarding Catawba’s condition.
Additionally, in the Milwaukee area, situated in Washington County, a site is still owned by 5R in West Bend. Therefore, it isn’t eligible to receive state-appropriated cleanup dollars, as Gwidt explained. She was also unsure of any initiatives taken by city leaders to assume control of the space.
Gwidt estimated the costs to clean up the sizeable area will be between $500,000 and $1 million.
Restitution Money Trickles In
Although several ex-executives from 5R have provided some assistance in terms of financing these projects, most of the expenses will be shouldered by taxpayers. A starkly different case can be seen at its former facility situated in Tennessee, where the private owner eventually spent 1.1 million to take care of remediation issues.
Gwidt reported that the former CEO of the organization, 62-year old Kevin Shibilski, paid a restitution fee of $100,000 to the DNR. Presently, he has been confined in a low security prison in Duluth, Minn., with an expected release date of July 18th, 2025.
James Moss, the previous 5R President who is now 64 years old, concluded his prison sentence in September 2022. The repayments that were demanded cost nearly $1.96 million altogether. As assessed by Gwidt, at the rate of what Moss was paying monthly, around $127, it would take him more than 1,200 years to settle these charges.
Due to the insufficient restitution money acquired, the state legislature took decisive action to fund the cleanup. In 2022, a unanimous bill was passed providing the DNR with a $2.5 million budget to complete work on all 5R sites by June 30th, 2023. Yet according to Gwidt, only $1.45 million remains, which will be adequate for Price County but may leave Washington County incomplete.
On July 5th, Gov. Tony Evers signed off on the 2023-25 biennial budget, which added an additional $2 million to the DNR’s budget. This brings the DNR’s total spending for all 5R sites to $4.50 million, including the previous $1 million that had already been put towards it. This bill also extended the DNR’s allocated spending deadline by a year.
Shibilski Calls on Former GovernorÂ
Shibilski, currently appealing his prison sentence for the alleged wrongdoings of 5R processors, which he co-ran, is ironically connected to the governing body in charge of the cleanup. Most notably, he was a Democratic state senator and briefly served as the tourism secretary under a previous governor.
At his sentencing in federal court, several letters were submitted on behalf of Shibilski. These included documents from the former Gov. Tommy Thompson, as well as then-Secretary of the Wisconsin DNR, Cathy Stepp, who presently leads the cleanup effort for this project. This was reported by the Wisconsin State Journal newspaper.
In his statement, Thompson praised Shibilski for his efforts in advancing education funding and environmental conservation.
