Facts

Whirlpool Corporation and our people have been a part of the fabric of the Clyde community for over 60 years. We have over 3,000 people going to work with us every day in Clyde. We live here, too, and we are also very eager to learn as much as we can about the health questions that are being raised.

We empathize with the families who have suffered illnesses or deaths of their loved ones. The allegations made by the plaintiff attorneys in the lawsuits that have been filed, however, are not supported by scientific or medical evidence. There is no scientific or medical evidence linking the reported health issues with any of Whirlpool’s operations at the Clyde plant or the limited and contained amounts of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) found at the former Whirlpool Park.

Background

In 2012, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) investigated an area of the former Whirlpool Park that may have been filled with dirt more than 50 years ago. The investigation discovered the presence of a contaminant, PCBs.

An environmental site assessment was conducted at the former Whirlpool Park in 2013 under the supervision of the U.S. EPA. This sampling confirmed that there is no health risk and that the site was used as a recreational park and not as a dump by Whirlpool.

General Information

  • Whirlpool purchased the site known then as Whirlpool Park in 1953 for use as a park for employees and their families and friends.
  • The park was closed in 2006 after several years of declining usage and was sold to a private owner in 2008.
  • We do not know where the contaminant at the former Whirlpool Park site came from or how it got there. No matter where the PCBs came from, they ended up on property previously owned by Whirlpool, so the company is taking appropriate and responsible steps in this matter.
  • Whirlpool never authorized any dumping of contaminants at the site.
  • Whirlpool was notified of the contaminant issue at the former Whirlpool Park site by the U.S. EPA in July 2012.

2013 Environmental Site Assessment

  • Testing conducted at the former Whirlpool Park in 2013 validated that there is no health risk and that the site was used as a recreational park and not as a dump by Whirlpool.
  • 328 sub-surface soil samples were taken and tested for 232 chemical compounds.
  • No PCBs or other man-made chemicals were found in groundwater samples.
  • The low levels of PCBs and metals found at this site were at concentrations that pose no health risk and are not surprising for fill dirt used in the 1950s and 1960s.
  • Samples containing PCBs above U.S. EPA residential standards were found only in limited areas comprised of fill material near the basketball court and former grist mill, which is consistent with the prior sampling by the U.S. EPA in the area of the basketball court.
  • Only 23 samples of the 248 taken from the former “East Ravine” area exhibited concentrations of PCBs above the EPA residential level of one part per million.
  • PCBs above the EPA residential standard are present only in fill material in a limited area within the east half of the property.
  • A summary of the report is available here, a graphic showing the location of the samples that were taken and the results is available here, and the full report and data submitted to the EPA is available here.

U.S. EPA’s Investigation

  • Samples taken from the property at the former Whirlpool Park showed a contaminant was found at depths at which people would not have been exposed.
  • Federal and state regulators conducted sampling and environmental reviews on current Whirlpool Clyde facilities separately from the former Whirlpool Park. The U.S. EPA investigation of the Clyde manufacturing plant determined “that removal action was not warranted” because no health risk was found. This is supported by the results of testing performed by the U.S. EPA on a neighbor’s well, which found no traces of the contaminant.
  • The 2013 environmental site assessment was conducted to determine more details about the contamination. This testing confirmed that there is no health risk.

Actions Whirlpool has Taken

  • We are working with environmental experts to conduct further environmental testing of the former Whirlpool Park site.
  • We are working with federal and state agencies to determine next steps based on the results of those tests.
  • We are reviewing our records and conducting a full environmental review of the site to attempt to learn when, where, and in what amounts contaminants may have entered the soil.
  • As part of the Ohio EPA Voluntary Action Program, we have completed the Phase I property assessment.
  • We have examined the site with Environmental Protection Agency experts and have interviewed past employees as well as the current owner of the property.
  • We have collected and examined aerial photographs and have conducted other research.

Actions Whirlpool Will Take Next

Using the site assessment as a scientific basis, Whirlpool will now work with the U.S. EPA, the Ohio EPA and the property owner on the development and implementation of next steps.