INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Northern Indiana residents who sued a wood-recycling plant over its dust emissions are awaiting a federal judge's approval of a settlement calling for the plant to close down within five years.



The proposed settlement reached last month also calls for plant operator Soil Solutions Co. to remove all of the site's wastes.



A federal judge in Hammond will consider final approval of the settlement on June 16.



The Elkhart plant grinds scrap wood into animal bedding and mulch, but neighbors have complained for years that its dust and other emissions threaten their health and keep them indoors.



Environmental attorney Kim Ferraro sued VIM Recycling on behalf of local residents in 2009, two years before the plant was sold to Soil Solutions.



About 1,800 residents have joined the class-action suit.