GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (From news reports) -- The Michigan Attorney General's Office announced it has reached two settlements with current and past owners of a paper mill in White Pigeon.

The settlements come from a lawsuit that Michigan AG Dana Nessel filed in October 2024 against Ox Paperboard WP and White Pigeon Mills. That lawsuit claimed the two companies repeatedly violated environmental laws.

According to Nessel, between June 2020 -- when Ox Paperboard took over White Pigeon Mill -- and 2024, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy issued seven violation notices for improperly discharging wastewater contaminated with PFAS.

"As Attorney General, I have prioritized protecting Michigan's environment and holding polluters accountable," Nessel stated in 2024. "When companies operating in Michigan fail to respect our laws and our communities, our department will not hesitate to use its full authority under the law to defend our public health and our natural resources.

"It is unacceptable for companies like Ox Paperboard to pollute Michigan's precious water and put the health and safety of Michigan families at risk."

Under the settlement, Ox Paperboard will pay $95,200 in civil penalties for the environmental violations and cover EGLE's legal costs. The company will also take steps to clean up the property around the mill. It will close a former wastewater lagoon, address any PFAS contaminated water on the property and prevent any more unauthorized discharges.

This settlement adds to one reached in April with the paper mill's former owner, Artistic Carton, which operated the mill from 1976 through 2019.

"Ensuring Michigan residents have clean water and a healthy environment is one of our top priorities, and companies that pollute our waters will face consequences," Nessel said in a statement. "These settlements will reduce historic and ongoing PFAS pollution from the White Pigeon Mill and will help protect the White Pigeon River for years to come."

EGLE Director Phil Roos said the settlement is a message to the White Pigeon community that the state government will hold polluters accountable.

"Communities like White Pigeon deserve to know their water and environment are being protected," Roos said in a statement. "These settlements send a clear message that Michigan will hold polluters accountable and take action to safeguard our natural resources. We're committed to ensuring a cleaner, healthier future for all Michiganders."

PFAS -- or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances -- are a large group of compounds first developed in the 1940s and incorporated into all sorts of products for waterproofing and heat resistance.

Decades later, research showed that PFAS compounds take a long time to break down organically and can build up in the human body, causing serious health problems, including cancer. According to the National Institute of Environmental Health Services, there are more than 15,000 known PFAS compounds.

The Environmental Working Group says there are now more than 9,000 confirmed PFAS-contaminated sites across the United States, including at least one in all 50 states, Washington D.C. and two American territories. MPART is tracking 365 confirmed contamination sites or areas of interest in Michigan.