Parallel Products wants to expand its current recycling facility into a trash transfer station. That spells bad news for the New Bedford residents. CLF and our partners are stepping up to protect the community and environment.
“EPA has finally set drinking water standards for two of the dozens of toxic PFAS compounds being found in drinking water across the country and adopted a risk-based algorithm for others,” said CLF President Bradley Campbell. “Applause should be muted. The federal government dithered on this issue decades, as a generation of children drank unsafe water, and EPA did so even as many states acted more urgently to adopt more protective standards.”
“Everyone deserves a say in what happens in their backyards, no matter what language they speak,” said Staci Rubin, Vice President of Environmental Justice at CLF. “It’s unconscionable that Massachusetts officials are allowing this polluting project to plow ahead in the face of such strong community opposition. The EPA needs to step in and force the state to do the right thing by starting this process over.”
“The rivers and streams flowing into Great Bay are being inundated with polluted stormwater every time it rains,” said Melissa Paly, Great Bay Piscataqua Waterkeeper at CLF. “The nitrogen in this stormwater runoff is harming the waterways that make New Hampshire’s Seacoast such a special place to live and visit, and it cannot be allowed to continue. Many of our communities have made great strides in reducing pollution from wastewater, now it’s time to step up and reduce pollution in stormwater.”
“These iconic rivers are suffering because of the EPA’s consistent foot-dragging,” said Heather Govern, CLF’s Vice President of Clean Air and Water. “Despite all the evidence linking stormwater pollution to dirty and unsafe water, the agency has failed to take legally required steps to address this growing problem. We have waited over three years for them to regulate the pollution, and these rivers cannot wait any longer.”
CLF has pushed the EPA to hold large property owners along the Charles, Mystic, and Neponset rivers accountable for their water pollution.
“During every heavy rainfall, a toxic soup of pollutants flows into our most iconic rivers, threatening water quality, wildlife, and people,” said Heather Govern, CLF’s Vice President of Clean Air and Water. “The EPA has announced a first step to protect these rivers, but the agency must now commit to a firm date when they will issue a draft permit. The longer the permits take, the longer the damage continues.”
“Significant pollution has plagued the Merrymeeting River and threatened Lake Winnipesaukee for many years,” said Tom Irwin, CLF Vice President for New Hampshire. “The EPA clearly saw the importance of this case and chose to intervene to protect the health of these waters. While there is still some process remaining, we’re on a path to resolving this case and ending this harmful pollution.”
“Every time it rains, a toxic stew is running into three of the area’s most iconic rivers,” said Caitlin Peale Sloan, Vice President of CLF Massachusetts. “We’ve repeatedly asked the EPA to clean up this pollution, but our pleas have fallen on deaf ears. It’s time for the agency to hold these large properties accountable for the constant damage they’re doing to our cherished rivers.”
Slashing polluting emissions from medium- and heavy-duty vehicles is a critical part of our climate fight.
