CHEMLAWN <CHEM>, ECOLAB <ECON> IN MERGER PACT Chemlawn Corp and Ecolab Inc said they signed a definitive merger agreement under which Ecolab will buy all outstanding Chemlawn common stock for 36.50 dlrs a share in cash, for a total of about 370 mln dlrs. Under terms of the agreement, Chemlawn said it rescinded its previously announced rights dividend plan. Chemlawn previously rejected a 27 dlr a share offer from Waste Management Inc <WMX>. Yesterday, the Oak Brook, Ill.-based waste disposal company said it was prepared to offer 33 dlrs a share, or about 330 mln dlrs, for Chemlawn, a lawn-care company. Chemlawn had said last week that it was negotiating with other possible suitors, which it did not identify. A Chemlawn spokesman said further details on the merger would be issued later. Ecolab is a maker of commercial laundry detergent based in St. Paul, Minn. For its first six months ended December 31, the company earned 20.4 mln dlrs, or 76 cts a share, on sales of 421.8 mln dlrs. Officials at Waste Management could not be reached for immediate comment.