DEM Director Gray: Probably Should Have Taken Action Earlier and We Still Have an Enforcement Hammer
Thursday, March 16, 2023
In an interview with Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management director Terry Gray, he answered questions from GoLocal about the enforcement action announcement on Wednesday and about how his agency and the attorney general handled the illegal discharges into the Blackstone River that was ongoing over the past year.
When asked if the agency should have taken enforcement action earlier Gray said, “Hindsight is always 20/20. If we knew that we were going to have these upsets a year later, should we have done something earlier — probably — but we were operating under the assumption that these were isolated incidents."
“Maybe that was naive looking back,” said Gray.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTAnd Gray said that this action by the agency is a reminder that there are effective enforcement tools that can be used to force the correction of illegal activities.
“I think there is a message that there is still a hammer [in enforcement cases],” said Gray.
“When we see these repeat violations on really correctable problems that are not being addressed, the hammer is going to come out,” he said.
"It could be a civil action with the Attorney General, a penalty from us [DEM], or a penalty with the EPA,” said Gray.
Repeated Pollution, AG Drama, and Finally, Enforcement
On Wednesday, after nearly a year's delay and some drama, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha, the state announced an enforcement action against the City of Woonsocket, and its contractors Synagro and Jacobs — two national environmental firms.
The state’s action came after a series of GoLocal articles highlighting the lack of enforcement action unveiled that Neronha’s office had begun an investigation, but had not followed through.
Neronha and his office went on a series of attacks against DEM, Governor Dan McKee, and GoLocal.
Regarding the legal action announced on Wednesday, Gray said, “The message from this civil action is 'enough is enough.' The problems have to be addressed. This forces the parties to take action.”
Gray also alluded that there may need to be significant and expensive improvements to the Woonsocket wastewater facility and the Synagro-operated facility.
“There are probably some equipment upgrades necessary and we need to look at the long-term future of this facility,” said Gray.
The Synagro facility takes the solids from wastewater facilities throughout Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and Connecticut — more than three dozen facilities.
“There are not a lot of these facilities anymore. They have older technologies and need upgrades and those upgrades are expensive. We need to take a hard look at a system level of solids management,” said Gray.
“I think the city needs to take far closer attention to the actions of the contractors [Jacobs and Synagrow]," said Gray.
Related Articles
- Partly Treated Sewage Discharged Into Blackstone River, Says RI DEM
- Raw Sewage Dumped Into Blackstone Again, DEM Admits It Has Failed to Take Enforcement Action
- EDITORIAL: Neronha and RIDEM’s Environmental Protection Is Failing
- Save the Bay Calls for Enforcement Action Against Discharges Into Blackstone River
- Neronha Lashes Out at DEM, McKee, and GoLocal When Questioned About Lack of Enviro Enforcement
- Neronha Failed to Disclose His Office’s Investigation Into Blackstone Pollution - While Blaming DEM
- After Two Weeks, DEM Removes No-Contact Advisory for Blackstone, Due to Improperly Treated Sewage
- Neronha and DEM to Take Legal Action Against Sewage Discharge After GoLocal Series
