Departments
|
Week of 17 October 1997 |
Vol. I, No. 8 |
Feature
Article
BU, EPA agree on environmental enforcement action
by Brian Fitzgerald
On October 8 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Justice Department announced that they have entered into a consent decree with Boston University that resolves issues arising from an oil spill on the Charles River Campus and the storage of chemicals at the University's Medical Campus. Under the agreement, BU will undertake two Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) that will provide direct benefit to the community, and it will pay a penalty of $253,000.
"In both cases we took immediate action to address the problems, which are now corrected," said Provost Dennis Berkey. "And we subsequently worked with the EPA as it devised an appropriate settlement. Boston University is firmly committed to complying with all applicable environmental laws and to preventing any hazard to public health or the environment from its operations."
Two oil spills, one in 1992 and the other discovered in January 1996, released an unknown amount of oil into stormwater drains, and eventually, into the Charles River. The second and more serious of the spills was traced to an underground fuel tank behind the School for the Arts building at 855 Commonwealth Ave. BU, which reported the spill, quickly took steps to contain it and to prevent any significant impact on the Charles -- even before the source of the spill was traced to one of its own tanks. The University has since removed the tank, stabilized the migration of oil, and installed an impermeable liner in an underground storm drain to eliminate any pathway for the oil to reach the river. On the University's Medical Campus, an EPA inspection in June 1996 found that the storage of some chemicals did not comply with all relevant regulations. The University has since resolved all the issues raised and has enacted measures to ensure continued compliance.
In one SEP, BU will assist the EPA and the Charles River Watershed Association (CRWA) in their efforts to improve the water quality of the Charles River. Using sites on the Charles River Campus, researchers from BU, the EPA, and the Natural Resource Conservation Service will evaluate the efficiency and cost-effectiveness of "innovative application of stormwater control technologies," said CRWA President Robert Zimmerman, adding that the results of these investigations could be useful in designing and implementing future stormwater remediation projects throughout the watershed.
"The EPA intends to reach its goal of a fishable and swimmable Charles by Earth Day 2005," said EPA Regional Administrator John DeVillars. "Today's action takes us another step closer to that goal."
In the second project, BU will work with the South End/Lower Roxbury Open Space Land Trust to restore the Bessie Barnes Memorial Garden in Lower Rox-bury. The University will help conduct a soil testing program, remove and dispose of debris and contaminated soil, provide replacement soil as necessary, and install permanent fencing, an irrigation system, paths, and plot dividers. The goal is to preserve precious open space in the neighborhood that will serve as an attractive focal point for community activity, including growing vegetables safe for human consumption.
"I'd like to thank [Assistant Provost] Michael Field and [Associate General Counsel] Rosemary Dodek at BU for working closely with us in our proposal to remediate the Bessie Barnes Garden," said Lenee Handy, manager of the Land Trust.
The Charles River and Lower Roxbury projects will cost the University $518,000.
"We appreciate the spirit of cooperation at the EPA that has allowed us all to deal constructively with the issues at hand, and to provide such direct benefits to the community," said Berkey.
To ensure full compliance with the law, Boston University is conducting a thorough review of its environmental management systems. It has also centralized environmental management in the Office of the Provost and appointed an oversight panel drawn from top managers representing all relevant aspects of the University's operations. In addition, improved training programs have been implemented so that every student, faculty, and staff member who must handle any form of hazardous material will know the proper procedures for labeling, storing, transporting, and disposing of the material.
Under the terms of the consent decree, BU also commissioned an independent firm to conduct a formal assessment of the University's environmental management practices.
"By its nature, a research university faces many special challenges in its efforts to comply with the full range of statutes and regulations protecting the environment," said Berkey. "Its research and clinical programs involve a broad range of potentially hazardous materials, and it must train students and faculty as well as the full-time environmental health and safety staff in the proper handling of these diverse materials."
Berkey added that Boston University, like other major urban universities, has many buildings that have not only been adapted from other uses, but also predate current environmental laws and standards. The Charles River Campus was once an industrialized area, housing auto parts warehouses and repair centers. Several of Boston University's buildings on Commonwealth Avenue are former automobile dealerships, including the SFA building.
West Campus, which was the site of many manufacturing plants, is still flanked on one side by railroad lines and Conrail's Beacon Park Yard. Conrail, after a 1994 oil spill into the Charles, was convicted of six felonies for knowingly violating the Clean Water Act and paid $2.75 million in fines -- "the largest criminal penalty in the history of Massachusetts," DeVillars pointed out.
"There is no allegation that BU intentionally polluted the Charles," said U.S. Attorney Donald K. Stern, although he also stated that the oil spills were "preventable."
"Both as an educational institution and as a responsible member of the community, it is essential that we show leadership in this area as we move forward," said Berkey.