After a Decade, “Unregulated” RIRM on Allens Ave Faces Potential Enforcement Action by AG and RIDEM
Wednesday, May 24, 2023
Next week, Rhode Island Superior Court Judge Brian Stern will hold a hearing on the “unregulated” Rhode Island Recycled Metals (RIRM) to hear a motion that, if approved, will start an environmental investigation — a site investigation — after more than a decade of the facility being “unregulated.”
The site was deemed “unregulated” by the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM), Terry Gray, in an interview with GoLocal in March.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTOver the past three months, a GoLocal investigation via land, water and drone footage uncovered clear and ongoing environmental violations.
According to a court filing by the Rhode Island Attorney General's office last week, the state is seeking the court's approval to begin the process of environmental "inspection" and ultimately, enforcement.
"First, the State seeks a time line (sic) for the submission of the requisite Site Investigation Report, part of the overarching land remediation and permitting processes. During its March 30, 2023, meeting with RIDEM technical staff, RIRM was informed of the need of a Site Investigation Report," states the Attorney General's filing.
This filing by the Attorney General’s office comes more than a decade after the RIRM facility was cited by the Department for violations of the Clean Water Act and the Oil Pollution Act.
Years of Delays, 100 Court Hearings, Two Attorney Generals
First, in 2012, RIDEM filed notices of violation for environmental violations against the operators of RIRM.
In 2015, DEM and then-Attorney General Peter Kilmartin hit the company with a series of enforcement actions.
At the time, a complaint had been filed against Rhode Island Recycled Metals, LLC, and AARE, LLC, located on Allens Avenue in Providence, along with the property owner, and the onsite manager for RI Recycled Metals, Edward Sciaba, Sr. The complaint concerned violations of Rhode Island’s Oil Pollution Control Act and Water Pollution Act, and DEM's Water Quality Regulations, RI Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Regulations, and Oil Pollution Control Regulations.
"These corporations failed to obtain the permits that were required to begin operations, ignored the law, and then did not comply with the agreement they reached with DEM to resolve their environmental violations," said then-DEM Director Janet Coit. "By failing to invest in the equipment and other measures necessary to prevent pollution, their actions harmed the environment. As government officials work together to stimulate the economy, it's so important that we ensure compliance with our laws to provide an even playing field."
In 2016, a Special Master was appointed by Superior Court Judge Michael Silverstein. The attorney appointed to “oversee” the facility — Richard Land — and the court's involvement was designed to spark the clean-up of the property. But, the effect of the special master had the opposite effect. The facility operated immune from environmental enforcement.
Upon Silverstein’s retirement as a full-time member of the bench case was transferred to Judge Stern.
Since 2016 and the appointment of a special master, RIRM has been able to operate void of environmental oversight, the court has held approximately 100 hearings, and yet, there have been no orders of compliance with environmental laws despite clear environmental violations.
According to the Attorney General's office filing signed by Alison Hoffman, Special Assistant Attorney General Chief, Environment and Energy Unit, "RIRM is subject to the same requirements as every other entity within Rhode Island in building its Site Investigation Report and, and again, there is nothing on this record to support an exception or variance. If the regulations require it, RIRM must comply. It cannot be that because RIRM's bad behavior warranted it being placed under court supervision by a Special Master that RIRM somehow can or should be permitted to flout the law applicable to all other similarly-situated businesses."
But, despite the Attorney General's office filing, the facility has been impervious to environmental enforcement.
The Attorney General's motion concludes, "Without some sort of deterrence in place to discourage delay, RIRM will continue to ride the edge of contempt ( or in some cases, slip over into contemnor status) and these delays will continue. Not only do these delays increase the burden on the State in having to handhold the parties each step of the way, but it also allows the very real environmental violations to persist. Through these multi-year proceedings, it has become obvious that RIRM will not operate at the site compliant with law without significant and constant oversight. Additional provisions are therefore necessary to ensure that the (slow) progress that has recently been made with respect to removal of (some) vessels and the first steps of development of the Site Remediation plan continue, on time and without undue delay."
The hearing on the motion is scheduled for May 30th.
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