SALT LAKE CITY — US Magnesium, which operates a facility along Utah's Great Salt Lake, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday.
The move comes weeks after Utah's Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands said it was seeking to terminate the company's leases to operate along the lake.
Since 2002, US Magnesium has operated out of its facility in Rowley, but has recently laid off workers, leading to the state's concerns surrounding a waste pond, which the Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands alleged posed a public and environmental risk because it was not being maintained and hazardous chemicals could leak into the Great Salt Lake.
An environmental study claimed the US Magnesium was responsible for as much as 25% of northern Utah's winter pollution problems, which the company has denied.
In a statement released Wednesday night, the company said it entered into Chapter 11 as a path that "provides a framework to preserve the value of our business, honor our commitments to employees and partners, continue our longstanding commitment to environmental stewardship while being a key domestic supplier of critical minerals for many years to come."
