Rubber group awarded $700,000 in dispute

PORTLAND – A federal jury has awarded more than $700,000 to Maine Rubber International in a breach-of-contract dispute with a Maryland-based environmental consultant.

Maine Rubber said it was convinced to move its industrial tire and rim operations to a Portland site based on what proved to be an erroneous assessment by Environmental Management Group.

Maine Rubber eventually pulled out of the deal when significant hazards were discovered. But the company said it spent $200,000 in moving costs and lost more than $486,000 worth of business.

Environmental Management Group maintained that opposition from neighbors, rather than environmental hazards, drove Maine Rubber out of Portland.

In October 1998, Maine Rubber was planning to consolidate its two production sites at the former Durastone Precast Concrete Products site in Portland. In preparation for the move, Maine Rubber agreed to pay Environmental Management Group $1,900 for an assessment of the site, which had already been identified by neighborhood residents as an environmental problem.

An Environmental Management Group investigator visited the Durastone facility and reported finding nothing that would prevent the deal from going forward.

But eight months later, state and federal environmental agents uncovered thousands of pounds of hazardous chemicals and significant environmental damage to the property, caused by Durastone’s concrete production.

Maine rubber officials asked for more than $1 million in damages, but were pleased with Tuesday’s verdict.

“It really shows that the jury accepted our essential argument,” said Kurt Olafsen, Maine Rubber’s lawyer. “We depended on getting not only an accurate report, but we needed the information then, before the move.”

It was unclear if Environmental Management Group will appeal.