Frank v. Environmental Sanitation Management, Inc.

BILLINGS, Judge.

Plaintiff landowners sued Environmental Sanitation Management, Inc., [ESM], owner of a landfill, and the individuals owning ESM, for damages by reason of ESM’s maintenance of a permanent nuisance. A jury awarded plaintiffs actual damages against ESM and the court of appeals affirmed. We granted transfer to reexamine existing law and review the case as an original appeal. Mo. Const, art. V, § 10, 1945. We affirm.

ESM opened the landfill in 1973 and operated it until 1979. The landfill was located near Jefferson City and on land that had previously been used for farming. Although…