Opponents of a contract that asks Veolia North America to look for efficiencies in the St. Louis city water department could get a public hearing.
Board of Aldermen president Lewis Reed announced today that he’ll ask an aldermanic committee to look into allegations of corporate misbehavior at the company, which is headquartered in France. His request would have to be approved by the entire board.
The move for public debate heartened Kathleen Logan Smith, the executive director of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment.
"They have a horrible track record of compliance with environmental standards and regulations, they have a horrible record maintaining cost efficiencies, of fulfilling contracts," she said. "The list is sort of endless. It’s hard to come up with just one reason to hate this company."
Pressure from activist groups led a board of the city’s top three elected officials to delay voting on the $250,000 contract last month.
Follow Rachel Lippmann on Twitter: @rlippmann
