Massachusetts Reaches Agreement with City on Waste Issues

The state of Massachusetts’ Attorney General Tom Reilly and DEP Commissioner Robert Golledge announced that the town of Longmeadow will pay $250,000 to settle alleged violations of state environmental laws, and that current and former town employees will pay $15,000 for allegedly directing those illegal activities.

In his complaint against the town, Reilly alleged that Longmeadow disregarded its duty to protect public health and the environment. The complaint also alleged that Douglas Barron, former superintendent of Streets and Superintendent of Water and Sewers, now retired from the Town; and Richard W. Haraty, currently Acting Superintendent of Public Works, directed certain illegal activities at the Town’s DPW and recycling center facilities.

The settlement resolves all of the Commonwealth’s allegations, among which were that the town:

·            disposed of solvents and waste oil from its DPW facility through underground drains that led toward wetland areas;

·           buried and piled asbestos pipe at the DPW and recycling center facilities and allowed the release of harmful airborne particles of asbestos;

allowed the release of freon and other harmful coolants from the crushing of air conditioners and refrigerators;

·            improperly disposed of or buried dozens of drums filled with hazardous material, approximately 50 old fuel and oil tanks, truck tires, street sweeper equipment, auto fuel tanks, tractor tires, concrete, asphalt and other solid wastes left over from Town DPW projects;

·            expanded the operations of the Town recycling center without approval from DEP;

discharged raw sewage through storm drains into the Connecticut River;

·            improperly maintained sewer lines which discharged raw sewage to surface waters in the Town;

·            conducted road improvements in wetland resource areas; and

destroyed a beaver dam in a wetland resource area at the Fanny Stebbins Memorial Wildlife Refuge.

"We have now forged a solution that not only gets the existing damage repaired, but makes sure that the town won’t make the same mistakes in the future," AG Reilly said.  "The Town is now scrutinizing its operations, which is only appropriate given the extent of the variations."

DEP Commissioner Robert Golledge Jr. said, "Today’s settlement with the town of Longmeadow and two of its employees sets a new standard for municipal environmental responsibility. While the payment of a substantial penalty by the town and two senior managers is significant and necessary, the town’s commitment to remedy its past violations, investigate current conditions and to establish systems to avoid future violations carries a significant environmental benefit."

This case was first brought to AG Reilly’s Office by the Environmental Strike Force, a multi-disciplinary interagency group designed to handle high profile civil and criminal environmental matters.  The investigation was conducted by staff of the Strike Force and DEP’s Western Regional Office.

In addition to financial penalties and a clean up of remaining violations the judgment entered by the Suffolk Superior Court today, requires the Town to remedy all known environmental problems, to investigate whether there are any further violations at Town buildings, facilities and properties and to correct any violations it finds.  The Town also must devise and implement permanent internal review and audit measures to avoid future violations.