Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell announced two separate settlements with Hanover R.S. Limited Partnership (Hanover) and Pavestone, LLC (Pavestone), over allegations that each entity, in separate instances, violated the Federal Clean Water Act. The companies will make payments under those settlements totaling$174,000 most of which will fund projects to improve local water quality in Weymouth and Middleborough.
The Consent Decree with Hanover, filed with the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts and entered by the court on May 3rd, settles allegations that Hanover violated the federal Clean Water Act when it illegally discharged polluted stormwater into wetlands connected to the Plymouth River, both directly and via municipal catch basins at its recently developed 9.78-acre construction site located at 1325 Washington St. in Weymouth. The complaint alleges that the violations occurred in an area designated by the Commonwealth as an environmental justice community because it is disproportionately burdened with environmental and other injustices.
The Consent Decree requires Hanover to take actions that mitigate stormwater discharge such as installing stone catchment/infiltration trenches and silt sock. Additionally, Hanover was required to pay $64,000 to the Weir River Watershed Association for projects to benefit water quality in the Plymouth River watershed and reimburse the Attorney General’s Office $20,000 in attorney’s fees.
The Consent Decree with Pavestone, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on May 14th and pending court approval, resolves allegations that Pavestone, a subsidiary of the Quickrete Companies, violated the Federal Clean Water Act. The complaint alleges Pavestone illegally discharged industrial stormwater into the Sippican River Wetlands without obtaining or complying with the necessary federal permit. Pavestone’s facility is surrounded to the west, east, and north by the wetlands and water bodies that are adjacent and flow to the Sippican River, and the east side of the Pavestone’s facility is also adjacent to cranberry bogs within the Sippican River Wetlands.
The Consent Decree, if approved by the court, requires Pavestone to take actions to mitigate stormwater discharge such as eliminating all unauthorized non-stormwater discharges. Additionally, it requires Pavestone to make a payment of $60,000 to the Buzzards Bay Coalition Inc. for projects to benefit water quality in the Buzzard’s Bay watershed and reimburse the Attorney General’s Office $30,000 in attorney’s fees.
Stormwater pollution is regulated under a variety of Federal Clean Water Act permits and is recognized as the largest threat to water quality in the state. Certain construction sites and industrial facilities in Massachusetts must obtain specific authorization for stormwater discharges, properly monitor and control stormwater discharges, and comply with state water protection laws.
The announcement is part of a civil enforcement initiative out of AG Campbell’s Environmental Protection Division that focuses on combatting pollution by enforcing the requirements of the Federal Clean Water Act and the Federal Clean Air Act in Massachusetts, along with applicable state environmental laws. Since launching this initiative in 2018, the Division has reached over 20 settlements and recovered more than $1,900,000 for local environmental improvement projects and civil penalties. The Division has also prioritized directing settlement funds from appropriate enforcement actions to support communities who have been harmed by violations and historically overburdened by environmental harm.
The Hanover case was handled by Assistant Attorney General Helen Yurchenco, and the Pavestone case was handled by Assistant Attorneys General Helen Yurchenco and Emily Field and the Federal Enforcement Case Coordinator Muhammad Diallo, all of the AG’s Environmental Protection Division.
Original source can be found here.