Crow Land Landfill Update-March 26, 2010

Crow Lane Landfill Update –March 26, 2010

This update is being provided as part of MassDEP’s commitment to more frequent communications with the residents and officials of Newburyport concerning the capping and closure of Crow Lane Landfill. Please send your questions, comments and suggestions to: crowlane.information@massmail.state.ma.us. In addition to these email updates, correspondence and reports are posted in the MassDEP Northeast Region website at: http://www.mass.gov/dep/about/region/crowlane.htm.

Please call the New Ventures complaint line at (978) 462-5240 and, if you are able to do so, send an e-mail to CrowLaneLandfill@gmail.com and crowlane.information@massmail.state.ma.us as soon as possible when you detect odors. This information will assist us in having Shaw personnel when at the landfill investigate the complaints and in collecting additional off-site ambient air samples when odors are occurring.

Court Action Filed

On Thursday, March 25, 2010, the Attorney General’s Office filed a motion on behalf of MassDEP in Suffolk Superior Court regarding the Crow Lane Landfill. The Attorney General’s Office is requesting that the court issue an order granting the Department and its contractors access to the landfill for the purpose of repairing the damaged Flexible Membrane Liner (the “FML” cap) and gas extraction wells with the cost of these repairs paid to MassDEP’s contractors by reimbursement through New Ventures’ Financial Assurance Mechanism (the “FAM”). [A FAM is essentially a performance bond required of landfill owners by the Solid Waste Regulations. It serves to provide the Commonwealth with the funds necessary to perform closure and post-closure activities at a landfill in the event that the operator fails in whole or in part to do so in accordance with permits or orders].

In addition, the Commonwealth requested that the court declare that New Ventures has defaulted on its Landfill closure obligations and breached the provisions in their FAM because it cannot fund and perform the required repairs or any further closure work. The Attorney General argues that, because New Ventures has defaulted on its FAM obligations, the court should also declare that MassDEP is authorized to control and direct the use and disbursement of all remaining FAM funds to reimburse contractors performing all further Landfill closure work. Finally, the Attorney General asks that the court order New Ventures to submit to MassDEP revised cost estimates that fully and accurately address all tasks necessary to close the landfill and pay for post-closure maintenance of the landfill.

The court has scheduled a hearing on the Attorney General Office’s motion for Monday, March 29, 2010 at 2 PM in Suffolk Superior Court, Session C, Room 313 in Boston. The papers filed by the Attorney General’s Office with the court will be available on the MassDEP web page late Monday at http://www.mass.gov/dep/about/region/crowlane.htm.” Electronic copies of the Motion and Brief are attached to this email.