State officials say Asarco LLC owes Washington taxpayers millions of dollars for expenses related to the unfinished cleanup of a century-old smelter site in Everett.

Asarco, a Grupo Mexico SA subsidiary based in Tucson, Ariz., filed for Chapter 11 reorganization on Wednesday in Corpus Christi, Texas, citing a strike, cleanup liabilities and asbestos-related injury claims.

Washington was among its top 20 creditors listed in the documents, although the company disputes the claim and did not specify an amount. Other major creditors include Wilmington Trust Co., more than $152 million; Wells Fargo Bank, nearly $102 million; and St. Paul Travelers, $31 million. Federal officials estimate Asarco's nationwide cleanup obligations at $1 billion.

Washington's claim stems from a 1993 order by the state Ecology Department to clean up 687 acres in North Everett. David South, an Ecology manager overseeing the Everett cleanup, said Asarco owes the state $13 million, a combination of oversight costs and cleanup.

Pollution at the site dates from a late 19th- and early 20th-century smelter complex that was demolished in 1915. In the 1930s and '40s, houses and a golf course were built at the site.

Since 1999, soil contaminated by lead, arsenic and cadmium has been shipped by barge and dump trucks to Tacoma for containment and burial at a Superfund site.

Last year the Everett Housing Authority bought the 18-acre site for $3.4 million. Officials have agreed to sell seven acres of that land for $3.2 million to Barclays North Inc. of Lake Stevens, which plans to build as many as 85 town houses.

But Wednesday's filing halted cleanup at the site, which Ecology must certify as clean before the deal can close.