DEM has made a very irresponsible decison, which increases Portsmouth residents health risks by an alarmingly high rate. DEM has made this decision with no regard for human lives. Janet Coit should be removed from office immediately.

Portsmouth Town Council - time to stand up and do what you were elected to do. Protect the residents of Portsmouth.

OK, Who in the DEM is getting paid off to allow this to happen? The DEM needs to be investigated as someone making the decisions is taking some type of bribes.

It is obvious that there is surely wrongdoing going on. Both the DEM and the town administrator needs to be investigated because yes I am sure that someone is being paid dearly. The question is, who??? It was noted in The Projo June, 2007 that the Rhode Island Department of Health stated that raising the limit to 7ppm increases the risk of cancer to 1 in 50,000 people. Now do the math and figure out what 40ppm will do to people? People need to stand up and show your disgust with this. Call the Governor, contact Janet Coit, Director of DEM call the Town Council. These are the people making the decisions and all have nothing to lose. But certainly something to gain. $$$$$$$

What a farce! I agree that there seems to be more to this decision---financially speaking. Will DEM or AP Enterprises set aside funds when local residents exhibit health issues?

What happened to mr Driscoll I thought he was addressing these issues. Seems like he was all show at the meeting. Feel betrayed?

I think it may be time to replace Bob Driscoll. How much does he make a year? Also how much of a pension will he be getting?? This guy is purely in it for himself!

I couldn't agree more. I was shocked that at the town hall meeting when addressing island park residents he actually said he didn't know what level of authority the town council had over deem. He clearly knew based inboard experience with them. So the meeting was nothing but smoke and mirrors. What a shame

There is an imaginary line in Portsmouth in fact there a few. Sandy Point Ave and everyone who lives down there and that whole east side to Sea Meadow etc. then everyone else south of Clements. It was a better place to live when all that land was farms and the schools were small and all the kids were of the same class as were the working class families who lived here. Most town officials were honest and fair.... teachers worked for a fair living and Mr Shappy was in charge of schools... my how times have changed. Got to pay those $500,000+ mortgages at any expense.

Having just recently gone through 1 1/2 years dealing with DEM to build a home, I feel there is no way they are being "paid off" or causing harm to the community. In other words, if they say this is safe, it's safe. After all, THEY are the ones with the degree.
I noticed some of the folks picketing . . . they're worried about the toxins in the soil? How about what they're inhaling with every cigarette?

What was considered jewel neighborhoods has changed in the 2000's as the market kicked the neighborhoods around and people have gotten older. For example sea meadow is an over 50 neighborhood where the folks living there are stuck in the years 1970 when the covenants were written. Simply look at their ridiculous wooden roof covenant. What risk does that put the town in should there be fires. Neighbords such as common fence point are a jewel. Look at the prices of homes and what they are going for. Crazy high. The same can be said for island park. I think what was considered a certain class and style has changed so much over the years. However to have capping with nasty soil the entire town loses. No matter what neighborhood your in.

How did the soil arrive at the landfill from Fairhaven ,Massachusetts ? There was a company inTiverton called EnviroLogic, LLC that cleaned up those properties on Bay Street .That same company cleaned up oil for years after the 2003 oil spill in Buzzards Bay . The soil from the Buzzards Bay oil spill was from the beaches of Fairhaven .

I'd like to find out where all the soil from Bay Street in Tiverton and the oiled sand from the beaches in Fairhaven went to . My bet would be it's in the land fill . The Atlas Tack company in Fairhaven was a superfund site too . That plant had all kinds of toxic material too .

In 1978 when there was an oil spill in Tiverton at Northeast Petrolium down the hill from Lil Bears, oil covered the beach there and across the river all around the Sportsmens Club and all the way over to the Hummocks. A company out of Stoughton Mass called "JetLine Inc" was hired to clean oil off the coast. They dug a deep trench on the beach to the north side of where the condos are now and buried all the oil covered sand and rocks that could not be Hotsied off (Hot Pressure washers) they had someone watch from the top of the hill for DEM, and walkie-talkie down the hill and stall DEM until they covered up the hole. DEM people once they got down the hill would seldom even get out of their vehicle as it was cold out in early March. This was a time before video cameras, I watched this all happen and could not get anyone of authority to come down and look at this. My point is: Nothing has changed since that time 33 years ago.

The Congressional Representatives should be on top of this since it is a EPA regulation . The rules are set in congress and passed down to the state. Call them and get them involved.
Jack Reed
Call: (401) 943-3100
Fax: (401) 464-6837
Write: The Honorable Jack Reed
1000 Chapel View Boulevard, Suite 290
Cranston, RI 02920
Providence Office:
170 Westminster Street
Suite 1100

Sheldon Whitehouse
Washington Office:
Hart Senate Office Building
Room 717
Washington, D.C. 20510
202-224-2921 phone
202-228-6362 fax
David Cicilline
Official website: http://cicilline.house.gov/
Address:
128 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: 202-225-4911
Fax: 202- 225-3290
Washington DC Office

Jim Lanevin
Congressman Jim Langevin 109 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
phone: (202) 225-2735
fax: (202) 225-5976

Wait a minute, maybe I'm wrong but didn't the town sell the land without cleaning it up? Why is the new owner responsible now for the cleanup of 20 years of the town's dumping to a higher standard than the EPA has established?

I see that once again the Pr0jo ran a follow up with all the arsenic pp facts in place, and dirt from the island, but once again nothing was said about gas station dirt.If it walk like a duck, and looks, this morning buried somewhere not easy to find!

to the people ignorant enough to just believe if the dem says its safe then it is, good luck in life!!! There are plenty of other people with degrees that say it is not safe. If it is not a problem then why do they have limits set at all if its so "safe" why not just let them dump any level?? I mean come on really? And I agree with you that people should not smoke it is bad for you and can cause cancer, but I do not smoke and neither do my 5 and 1 year old, so they should they still be exposed to these levels that put them at a higher risk of developing cancer? And that nice new house that you built, is it on Mason Ave directly across where this is being freely dumped to blow around until the job is done? probably not or you might feel differently.

to Karen I do not base my feelings on a that petition, I have informed myself and read the whole BUD at the DEM site. So don't think you are better informed than me I have done extensive research on this matter. And from everything I read it says it would take 70 years before you seen the effects of this on our children, well I'm not sure if you have children of your own but that is an unexceptable risk to me I do not want my children to suffer at any age! I live directly across from this area with my children and I'm not sure were you live but when the wind is blowing does this soil hit your house? And also in BUD it says that they have to cover it within 14 days at a level of 40ppm, not 25 or 30 or 35, so I could potentially have these levels blowing in my windows all spring, summer and fall. Again not sure if you have children but would you like them breathing in those levels or at the level o 40pm for even 14 days? Or should I just be forced to keep my windows closed this year? And will I as a neighboor within 50 feet of this be warned when this is exposed for 14 days? I am not closed minded and agree this needs to be capped, But I feel that it is not being done properly, they should at the very least have a containment fence. And again all the people who feel "its not a signinficant risk" must not have children because no risk is accepptable when it comes to my children!

And you say with only a potential 14 day risk and it will be covered with 2 feet of soil, well I think you might need to go back and read the BUD because it states "when soil comes in at levels of 40ppm it has to be covered within 14 days with 6 inches of soil" , it does not state anywhere that there is a limit on how many times this can happen, so the potential is for alot more than 14 days of exposure! And the 2 foot cap of clean soil is not be put on until the end of the job.

so just so I am clear on where I stand on this issue, of coarse everyone would love to see it just be clean fill, but that is just not going to happen. I agree that once covered with 2 feet of clean soil i is not a problem, my problem is during the process precaution should be used. And I'm sorry I do not see as I witness the flooding in the roadway for years how elavating that land is not going to worsen the problem. I have read how the experts say it won't but with my own eyes find that very hard to believe. Is anyone willing to put their money where their mouth is and give the people a garauntee that this will not worsen the flooding issues? Would the DEM be willing to cover the damage if this does worsen the problem? No and they are not the ones who will be fighting their insurance company for money to fix homes! There are just alot of concerns with this project, but it is happening and all we can do now is sit and see what the effects in the years to come may be. Trust me I'm hoping that the DEM is correct and there will be no adverse health effects and that this will not cause further flooding problems. And I also I'm not sure on the facts of whether or not this company is being payed to take this soil, but I have heard that, if thats the case wouldn't it be better if the town took over and made the money for taking that soil if its gonna happen I would rather see it financially benefit the town!

@ a concerned parent, Thank you for responding to my comment in a thoughtful way. The only way we will get anywhere on this issue is through reasonable conversation, without all the shouting and accusations. I am your neighbor in Island Park; I live 2 short blocks from the landfill, and I am also a parent, so I share your concerns for my child's safety and the safety of all the children of Island Park.

A few of your comments do not match my understanding of the BUD and other references. The article that mentioned 70 years was calculating risks for people exposed over the entire 70 year period, not the affect of short-term exposure measured 70 years later. The BUD approves soil with an average of 20 ppm, and a maximum of 40 ppm, with the stipulation that it be wet down or covered to minimize blowing, and that it be covered with residential-grade soil. You're right that the cover within 14 days need only be 6 inches, but the 6 inches needs to be residential grade soil as well. Even if soil with an average of 20 ppm were to blow around, the fact that it's mixing with soil in the area would lower the effective concentration of arsenic -- the farther it blows from the landfill, the lower the arsenic levels get. Also, did you know that right now if you buy compost for your garden, it is legal for that compost to have naturally-occurring arsenic levels of 40 ppm? We make our own, but I've never had it tested for naturally-occurring arsenic.

I'm honestly not sure about the flooding issue. The DEM's response talks about hurricane conditions where the entire neighborhood floods, saying that the effect of the raised landfill would not matter. It's hard to determine whether there would be changes in how water runs off under normally rainy conditions, though.

My main concern, though, is the quality of the soil. My concerns about the current condition of the landfill, as well as the improved situation we'd get when the whole thing is finished, offset the minimal risk that would occur while the landfill is being filled in. Again, thanks for the discussion. It helps all of us to talk this stuff through.

What about a permanent silt fence as required during construction? I would think this would be a permanent and ugly fixture to keep the dirt from washing away and for containment management

Yes I too was under the understanding there would be a containment fence. And I understand that they are saying a majority would be at 20ppm but what i am saying is there is no rules that I have seen that limit how many loads of soil would be at 40ppm, so there is potential for alot more than 14 days of exposure. And with your statement about it decreasing the further away it gets, if that is true I do not live a few short blocks away, it is in my front yard, I live directly across from the site. And I do at this point believe that AP enterprise does not have the residents best interest in mind..And as your concern may not be in the issue of flooding during normal storms it is a huge concern for the residents of Mason Ave. And I disagree with it being hard to determine if it would change water runoff, if the land is raised it will def inetly cause more of an issue. There were parts of that land that were lower than the roadways , that now will not be. And I have read about the compost levels, a fact that was new to me. As I said the real issue I have here is if it is going to be done I would like to see it be done properly, with a containment fence and all the rules set into place. But the fact is in my opinion, AP enterprises really thought they would be able to just do whatever they wanted because I'm not sure if you have noticed but since DEM approved this nothing has been happening over there!