Plan to Move 50,000 Tons of “Hazardous" Material to Providence Neighborhood Draws Strong Criticism
GoLocalProv News Team
Plan to Move 50,000 Tons of “Hazardous" Material to Providence Neighborhood Draws Strong Criticism
Previously, North Kingstown and East Providence blocked a proposal by the Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC) to move an estimated 50,000 tons of what has been described as "hazardous" material to their communities.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTNow, the NBC plan is to move the material to Providence and locate it on the site of the Rhode Island Recycled Metals facility and four other adjacent lots. The Rhode Island Recycled Metals facility has been the subject of ongoing legal fights between the owners and regulators.
The proposal, however, is drawing strong criticism.
The material that is being proposed to be moved to the Washington Park neighborhood in Providence comes from the construction of the third phase of the combined sewer overflow project now being constructed in Pawtucket.
“The residents here have had enough of the disrespectful and hazardous practices of all city agencies and private companies. The thought that anyone would remotely consider dumping the toxic unwanted ‘sludge’ here on Allens Avenue on the water's edge is beyond comprehension in 2023,” said Linda Perry of the Washington Park Neighborhood Association.
Terry Gray, the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management in recent months, called the existing condition of Rhode Island Recycled Metals a de facto “unregulated” facility due to his agency’s inability to move forward with environmental enforcement. The site has been embroiled in legal battles for more than a decade.
Last week, attorney Richard Land, the court-appointed special master for the Rhode Island Recycled Metals site, in a hearing before Judge Brian Stern called the material NBC is proposing to locate to the Washington Park neighborhood “hazardous.”
Plan Blasted
“There is no justice here. The environment suffers. We are literally suffering from years of neglect and unwanted pollution I say train it all to another state after it is trucked to Quonset. Do not treat this South Providence Neighborhood of Washington Park as the eternal ‘dumping ground’ -- it will be our burial ground. There must be a better solution. Enough is enough,” added Perry.
Perry’s comment about disposing of the material out of state was one of the options identified by NBC’s contractor in a 2021 report called the “Blast Rock Management Plan.”
That report flagged the environmental issues with the material, stating, “Tunnel muck is akin to soil and is expected to be subject to Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (RIDEM) regulations. The main environmental concern with the tunnel muck is the concentration of arsenic it contains and its lack of suitability to be used as fill material on construction projects.”
The plan written by the contractor identified multiple disposal options — all at licensed facilities.
None of the options identified in the Blast Rock Management Plan recommended the disposal of material in a non-licensed disposal facility.
In late April, NBC filed for a “Beneficial Use Determination” application with DEM — seeking approval to bring the material to Providence and locate the waste across nearly 20 acres.
NBC and the Providence Redevelopment Agency have begun the preliminary process of taking the Rhode Island Recycled Metal property, adjacent property and three other parcels by eminent domain.
The Providence Redevelopment Agency’s chairman Manuel Cordero has refused to respond to repeated questions about the PRA involvement in the plan.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley similarly refused to answer if he supported the NBC plan.
The NBC filing with the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management recognizes that the arsenic levels exceed standards.
The NBC application states:
The material will contain heavy metals that occur naturally in the bedrock along the tunnel alignment.
Most notably, arsenic has been detected at concentrations that often exceed the RIDEM Direct Exposure Criteria (DEC) concentration of 7 parts per million (ppm). Beryllium, manganese, and thallium have also been found to exceed RIDEM DEC concentrations. It should be noted that the Massachusetts DEP's published natural background level for arsenic is 20 ppm, which allows for beneficial reuse at out-of-state facilities but at added cost due to hauling distances and possible tipping fees.
NBC Defends the Plan
In an email to GoLocal, Jamie Samons of the Narragansett Bay Commission said, “Some of this material excavated from the tunnel, but not all, contains a naturally-occurring hazardous substance (arsenic) above the State’s limit established for direct contact. While the material contains a naturally-occurring hazardous substance, this material is NOT hazardous waste, which is an entirely separate class of material. RIDEM allows for the reuse of this type of material (e.g., tunnel rock) on a case-by-case basis through a Beneficial Use Determination (BUD) process.”
She said, “The material does not meet the regulatory definition of hazardous waste’ or a ‘solid waste.’ ‘Solid Waste’ is the terminology used by RIDEM in its guidelines for approving material under a Beneficial Use Determination. As such, the application form uses that terminology. NBC is exploring all disposal options that lower the cost for disposal for NBC ratepayers while fully complying with all environmental regulations. RIDEM has a program that may allow for beneficial reuse of the excavated bedrock. One beneficial reuse is using the material as fill to raise the elevation of the land about the base flood elevation and then capping with clean material so that the land is available for development. Typically, property adjacent to waterways may need fill to raise the elevation about the flood plain (which is why we have looked at properties adjacent to waterways). NBC is exploring this option as it may be more cost-effective than transporting the material to out-of-state landfills.”
Samons added, “While the crushed bedrock does not fall under any existing RIDEM solid or hazardous waste regulations, we recognize that it must be managed in a responsible manner and that it is not suitable for all end uses. We have gone through significant efforts to identify existing environmentally compromised sites in Rhode Island that can be beneficially remediated and economically developed utilizing this material. In the end, through the BUD process, the final site receiving the crushed rock will be capped and secured for proper and safe future development/utilization.”