LINCOLN - AltEn, which has operated a troubled Nebraska ethanol plant that used pesticide-coated seed corn to produce biofuel, is facing more legal trouble.Six seed corn companies that have been cleaning up the AltEn ethanol plant site near Med, Nebraska, filed two separate federal lawsuits on Tuesday, February 22 seeking repayment for their work.

One of such lawsuits alleges that AltEn, its owner Tanner Shaw, and other companies under Shaw's control have mishandled the seed corn and contaminated byproducts in "violation of federal and state laws." They also allege that AltEn did not meet its commitments to the seed corn companies to dispose of the chemically treated seed properly.

Shaw allegedly abandoned the site and left millions of gallons of wastewater and thousands of tons of waste grain. This is in direct conflict with state orders to clean the site up.

“Environmental controls were lacking or nonexistent,” one lawsuit stated.

Another lawsuit claims that, in an effort to prevent creditors from getting reimbursed, Shaw sold off his assets. The seed corn companies also claim AltEn has refused to participate in stabilization efforts and instead hindered the response by the seed corn companies.The lawsuits filed Tuesday allege the "failures" of AltEn include the release of untreated wastewater onto neighboring parties, the stockpiling of thousands of tons of wet cake byproducts, and the mismanagement of millions of gallons of wastewater in lagoons "perilously close to failure."

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