• Charlton board urges Casella not to stop supplying bottled water

• By Debbie LaPlaca
  Correspondent

  
  Posted Jun. 21, 2016 at 8:36 PM
  
  

  CHARLTON – The Board of Health Tuesday pushed Casella Waste Systems to reconsider its plan to cease supplying courtesy bottled water to residents near the Southbridge landfill, whose wells are free of the toxins found at other homes in the neighborhood.

  Last October, Casella announced 1,4-dioxane was detected in 21 wells in Charlton, with eight exceeding the state drinking water regulation.

  A month later, the state Department of Environmental Protection named Casella, operator of the Southbridge landfill, the potential responsible party for the contamination.

  Casella is required to supply bottled water or whole-house filtration systems to homes with valid contaminate detections.

  Early this year, health board Chairman Matthew Gagner pushed Casella to assuage fears by also providing bottled water to residents with clean wells who live in the area where the 1,4-dioxane was prevalent.

  At the time, Mr. Gagner said he would not take no for an answer.

  The health board announced in February that Casella agreed.

  Landfill site manager Tracy Markham told the board Tuesday, the courtesy water will cease on June 29.

  A visibly emotional Mr. Gagner pressed her to reconsider.

  “As grateful as I was that you offered the water, I am equally disappointed that it will be discontinued. I’m not going to take no for an answer,” he said.

  Ms. Markham said the courtesy water was a temporary offering that was set to expire in April. Casella, she said, agreed to extend the service until the results of a new round of well tests were in hand.

  According to Ms. Markham, the April sampling of 48 residential wells on H Foote Road, Eleanor Road, Berry Corner Road and No. 10 Schoolhouse Road resulted in no new contaminate detections.

  Ms. Markham said she understands and respects Mr. Gagner’s position and agreed to relay his request to the company’s decision makers.

  Casella, doing business as Southbridge Recycling & Disposal Park, assumed operations of the Southbridge landfill at 165 Barefoot Road in 2004.