Dive Brief:

• An Empire District Electric Co. employee filed a lawsuit in Jasper County Circuit Court, alleging that workers at Empire's Riverton power plant in Kansas were exposed to hazardous materials, including asbestos.
• The suit seeks class-action status for plant workers, who were allegedly told to hide materials from environmental oversight employees during renovations.
• Empire's stated policy is not to comment on pending litigation.

Dive Insight:

At present, this case has not been granted class-action status, but a judge has issued an injunction to keep Empire from destroying potential evidence that might corroborate claims in the suit. Empire is investor-owned and serves more than 200,000 customers across Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas.