It has been four-and-one-half years since the Rest of River (RoR) agreement was unveiled to the residents in the Housatonic River Corridor. The agreement was negotiated behind closed doors without any public input. Agreement was arrived at through mediation between representatives of the towns of Sheffield, Great Barrington, Stockbridge, Lenox, Lee, and GE.
The agreement remains controversial since only twenty percent of toxic PCB’s dumped by the General Electric Corporation (GE) will actually be removed from the river. Moreover, it will result in the creation of yet another toxic waste dump in the Berkshires.
The reaction to the news of this agreement was immediate. The residents of the Town of Lee, at town meetings, and on the ballot demanded the rescinding of the agreement. Residents of other towns were a bit slower to respond, given the secrecy of the process. Recently, this has changed dramatically.
The Town of Lee acted immediately to find ways to stop the building of a chemical dump over a major aquifer, and to negotiate an effective cleanup of the river. The current plan does not provide destruction or remediation of the poisons, just for moving and burying them. There are better ways.
Currently, Lee has filed a lawsuit against GE and Monsanto, who first produced PCB’s. The suit alleges that the companies acted in concert and without justification to do harm to the residents of Lee by covering up the ill effects of the chemical, and further, by dumping them in the river. There is ample documentation to show this is so. The suit is being challenged of course. GE and Monsanto want the court to dismiss the case. Should the Town of Lee prevail, Lee will ask the court for a jury trial in Western Massachusetts.
The Town of Lee has formed a PCB Committee, whose meetings are open to the public. It consists of approximately a dozen members of varying backgrounds and expertise. The purpose of the group is focused on working with consultants and experts in order to enlighten the public. To make clear the harmful effects of PCB’s, the flawed and ineffective RoR plan, and to offer alternatives that will better serve the residents of the river corridor. An environmental consulting firm has been hired to assist in getting the word out on a larger scale.
These efforts do not conflict with Lee’s settlement in the RoR agreement. That remains in place, with the town having received $25,000,000+. It is only through the activism of Lee residents that we have come this far in a relatively short time. Perhaps residents in the other RoR towns might demand their town governments bring this to the forefront. We all have a say in this matter. Let’s say it.
