Chief U.S. District Judge David Proctor found James “Jay” Justice III in contempt on Thursday for failing to respond to multiple court orders in an ongoing Clean Water Act lawsuit in Birmingham.
The order was part of an ongoing lawsuit filed by Black Warrior Riverkeeper and Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, against Bluestone Coke for allegedly violating the Federal Clean Water Act.
Although Bluestone Coke is not operating, the lawsuit filed in September 2023 alleges the plant is still discharging harmful and illegal pollutants. The plant has a permit to discharge wastewater into Five Mile Creek, which flows into the Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River. However, the company has violated that permit more than 390 times and is not maintaining an onsite wastewater treatment facility. Additionally, water sampling by Black Warrior Riverkeeper revealed pollutants in the discharge not allowed by the permit, including barium, strontium, and E. coli, according to the lawsuit.
The Birmingham coke plant is owned by the family of West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice, the 2024 Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate in West Virginia. Jim's son, James “Jay” Justice III, owns the plant.
According to a 2019 press release from the company announcing the purchase of the plant, the facility produces high-quality metallurgical coke, a key component in the operation of foundries, blast furnaces and the production of metals such as iron and steel.
Proctor set a September 11 deadline for Bluestone Coke LLC, Donald Wiggins, and Justice to purge the contempt order by paying the plaintiff environmental groups’ legal costs and fees and responding to discovery and alternative mediation requests from the plaintiffs.
“Any failure to comply with this Order or to cooperate or participate SHALL result in an order that Defendants appear and show cause in person as to why they are not in compliance with this Order and why the court should not impose further contempt sanctions. Failure to appear and show cause in person may result in (a) monetary sanctions, (b) an order of default, and (c) other appropriate sanctions,” Proctor said last week.
Justice Order by Caleb Taylor on Scribd
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