On July 29, 2025 the natural resource Trustees for the Ciba-Geigy case released a Final Restoration Plan Amendment / Environmental Assessment (RPA/EA) (PDF, 48 pages) that provides an update on completed restoration activities, a Consistency Evaluation regarding proposed site-specific restoration projects that were evaluated in the 2017 Final RP/PEA (PDF, 104 pages), and an evaluation of a new proposed restoration action: feral swine management on state-owned lands–including land that was acquired by the state as a result of the settlement. These actions will restore habitat and natural resources injured as a result of contaminants released at the site.

Since the release of the 2017 Final RP/EA, the trustees have acquired two parcels totaling 327 acres–the Simmons Tract in 2018, and the Rigsby Tract in 2019. Both properties border existing protected habitat areas and have been transferred to the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources for long-term protection and management. The newly proposed feral swine management restoration action would partly take place on these acquired lands.

Funds for these restoration efforts were acquired as part of the 2013 Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) settlement (PDF, 33 pages) between BASF and the Trustees. The Trustee Council for the Ciba-Geigy case includes NOAA, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and The Geological Survey of Alabama.

Background on the Ciba-Geigy Restoration Site

Starting in the early 1950’s, the Ciba-Geigy Chemical Corporation (Ciba-Geigy) McIntosh, Alabama facility was used for the production of various chemicals. Some hazardous substances were disposed of on-site and discharged into the Tombigbee River, impacting water, sediment, fish, shellfish, migratory birds, and several federally and state-protected species. In October 2013, the Trustees and BASF (formerly Ciba-Geigy Corp.) reached a settlement that provided $3.2 million for the restoration of injured natural resources within the Mobile Bay Watershed.

For more information and to stay in the know, sign up for DARRP’s Coastal Recovery news.