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Construction Firm Faces Fine for Clean Water Violations in Worcester Development

Release Date: 06/04/2009
Contact Information: David Deegan, (617) 918-1017

(Boston, Mass. June 4, 2009) - A construction company building a 79-acre residential subdivision of townhouses in Worcester, Mass. faces up to $157,000 in penalties of for alleged violations of the federal Clean Water Act.

Bailin & Associates, Inc. of Worcester has been constructing the subdivision since 2003. Because the company is disturbing more than one acre of land, they are required to apply for a water discharge permit – either an individual NPDES permit or a NPDES General Permit for Storm Water Discharges from Construction Activities.

Though construction began in 2003, Bailin failed to apply for a NPDES permit until April of 2008. Additionally, Bailin failed to install and maintain adequate Best Management Practices (BMPs) at the Site such as sedimentation control barriers, stockpile containment, and surface and slope stabilization. Lastly, Bailin violated the Clean Water Act by allegedly discharging stormwater from the construction site without a permit.

Before and after Bailin received permit coverage on May 29, 2008, the company installed pollutant control measures, including a detention pond with a manually-activated submersible pump that discharges to a wooded wetland, flows through a channel into an unnamed tributary, through a series of ponds, then to Beaver Brook and ultimately to the Blackstone River. Bailin pumped silted water from this detention pond causing siltation in the unnamed stream and ponds.

Stormwater runoff from construction activities has the potential to significantly impact the water quality of receiving waters. As storm waters flow over a construction site, they can pick up and transport certain pollutants, such as oil and grease from petroleum products, metals from paints and sealants, sand and aggregate from unstable material stockpiles, and solvents and construction debris. Contaminated stormwater runoff can harm or kill fish and or other aquatic wildlife. Uncontrolled stormwater runoff from a construction site can affect an aquatic habitat and cause stream bank erosion and flooding.

More Information:

EPA Clean Water Enforcement in New England (epa.gov/region1/enforcement/water)

EPA storm water issues in New England (epa.gov/region1/topics/water/stormwater.html)

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