We would like to congratulate our member, the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, for their successful lawsuit against the amusement park, Worlds of Fun.

Worlds of Fun repeatedly violated the Clean Water Act by discharging illegal levels of pollutants such as chlorine, copper, oil, grease, and total suspended solids into the Missouri River and its tributary, Shoal Creek. On March 9th, MCE’s lawsuit against Worlds of Fun was finally resolved in a court-approved settlement agreement.

Under the agreement, Worlds of Fun must develop and implement a Facility Compliance Plan to ensure the park will meet the requirements of the Clean Water Act, pay for MCE’s litigation costs and attorney fees, and spend $100,000 on supplemental environmental projects in the Shoal Creek watershed.

The funds will be split between two Missouri nonprofits, Stream Teams United and Bridging the Gap, Inc. Stream Teams United will create a Shoal Creek Stream Team to monitor water quality and conduct river cleanups, while Bridging the Gap will implement on-the-ground restoration projects to improve water quality within the watershed.

Congratulations to MCE for their monumental win in river cleanup and restoration!