ExxonMobil settles for $30M with Charlton
Photo Courtesy www.baypath.tec.ma.us
Bay Path Regional High School is among the locations that will be hooked up to the new water supply under the agreement.
ExxonMobil has agreed to a settlement with the town of Charlton worth approximately $30 million that will bring uncontaminated water to the town's schools.
The agreement was announced Tuesday night with the Board of Selectmen and the Water Sewer Commission regarding “releases” at various sites, including the LaMountain Gas Station, according to a press release issued by the town that detailed the agreement. At the core of the agreement, according to town officials, new water infrastructure will bring public water to sites contaminated by Methyl tertiary butyl ether (MtBE) including the Charlton Middle School, Charlton Heritage Elementary School and Bay Path Regional High School. Masonic Home will also be hooked up to the new water line.
According to a release from the town, Charlton has had various spills of chemicals into the ground including salt and petroleum products. Several releases have caused Charlton to evaluate either developing its own drinking water supply system or entering into a partnership with another town or entity to supply water to areas of the Town where the aquifer has been contaminated, according to officials.
The agreement for the new water supply was the result of more than 20 years of contamination reports and testing, limited treatment approaches, plans and designs, enforcement proceedings, and on again, off again negotiations, according to town officials.
The agreement includes a $7.8 million cash settlement from ExxonMobil to the town of Charlton and $250,000 to fund a Water Superintendent.
In a response to a request for comment, ExxonMobil spokesperson Margaret Ross said that the company and the town had reached an agreement to provide a long-term solution to groundwater contamination attributed to gasoline releases by installing new waterlines. The final agreement is still being worked out with the town and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, she said.
However, she said that MtBE levels are well within those determined to be safe by state authorities. MTBE is not the sole source of water contamination in the Charlton area, Ross said, explaining that the new waterlines would protect water quality from all source of contamination.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments