American Ecology Signs Letter of Intent for Greenfield Environmental.

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 20, 1995--American Ecology Corporation ("AEC") (NASDAQ:ECOL), a chemical and radiation waste disposal and services company, announced today that it has signed a letter of intent to purchase Greenfield Environmental, Inc. ("Greenfield"), a privately owned environmental services company based in San Diego, California, for 187,500 shares of newly issued preferred stock of American Ecology Corporation, valued at $18.7 million.

Greenfield offers hazardous waste management services including lab packing, specialty decontamination, less-than-truckload services, emergency response services, transportation, treatment, and recycling. Greenfield operates treatment and storage facilities in Chula Vista, California, and Phoenix, Arizona.

In connection with the proposed acquisition, the Company is forming a new subsidiary, American Ecology Chemical Services, Inc. ("AECS"), which will hold all of the Company's chemical waste operations, including Greenfield. This new subsidiary will combine the extensive "front-end" hazardous waste services capability of Greenfield with American Ecology's hazardous waste disposal facilities in Beatty, Nevada and Robstown, Texas, and its fuel blending and deepwell disposal facility in Winona, Texas creating a comprehensive hazardous waste management organization in the southwestern United States. The preferred stock issued by the Company to current Greenfield shareholders would be mandatorily convertible into shares of AECS common stock. Under certain conditions, the American Ecology preferred stock, at the holder's option, may be redeemed for shares of AEC common stock at a price equal to the greater of $6 per share or the average of the Company's common stock closing price for the 30 days prior to the conversion date.

The closing of the acquisition is subject to the negotiation, execution, and delivery of a definitive agreement, the satisfactory completion of due diligence and other customary conditions to closing, bank consent, and approval by the Board of Directors of American Ecology Corporation and Greenfield. The transaction is expected to close in approximately 90 days.

"Greenfield is both a leading provider of hazardous waste management services in California, Arizona, and Baja Mexico, and the largest privately-owned hazardous waste transportation company in the western United States," commented Jack K. Lemley, chief executive officer of American Ecology Corporation. "This proposed merger, in conjunction with our current Nevada and Texas facilities, significantly broadens our market coverage on both the West Coast and the boarder with Mexico."

American Ecology operates a chemical waste disposal facility in Nevada and two in Texas. The Company also operates a low-level radioactive waste (LLRW) disposal facility in Washington, has received a license approval for a similar facility in California, has a license application pending for a LLRW disposal facility in Nebraska, and operates a LLRW processing facility in Tennessee. Services provided by the Company include waste packaging, transportation, consulting, pretreatment, disposal, fuels blending, recycling, and clean-up services. The Company's common stock trades on the Nasdaq Stock Market under the symbol ECOL.

CONTACT: American Ecology Corporation, Houston

C. Clifford Wright, Jr., 713/624-1902

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