Community Corner

Clarification and Uncertainty at DEP Meeting on Tire Pond

The Department of Environmental Protection responds to North Haven residents' concerns about the decision to fill the Tire Pond with soil from the Newhall cleanup effort in Hamden, but questions linger about site's safety.

The Department of Environmental Protection held a forum Tuesday night in the meeting room at the North Haven Public Library to address public concern about the DEP's decision to fill portions of the Tire Pond landfill with sediment from the Newhall neighborhood cleanup site in Hamden.

Over the course of the nearly two-and-a-half-hour meeting, the DEP outlined the ongoing effort to close the Tire Pond, an illegal landfill in a former clay quarry on the border of North Haven and Hamden comprised of 15-30 million tires dumped there by owner Joseph Farricielli between 1978 and the mid-1990s.

Although the DEP has been conducting closure work on the Tire Pond since 1995, including the placement of 1.1 million cubic yards of fill from Boston's Big Dig on the site between 2002 and 2005, controversy arose in recent weeks when North Haven residents complained that the Newhall soil slated to cap the Pond might contain toxic components, such as lead and arsenic.

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In his introduction to the library meeting, North Haven Board of Selectman member and Connecticut State Representative Steve Fontana stated that purpose of the session was to provide town residents with answers concerning the DEP's decision to use the Newhall sediment.

"The story has come out in bits and pieces and we wanted the DEP to provide a coherent narrative," said Fontana.

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Diane Duva of the DEP explained the necessity of covering the Tire Pond, citing the possibility that the exposed tires could catch fire, leading to a conflagration that might last months and release toxic fumes into the air.

Duva went on to state that the soil from Newhall would undergo extensive testing before arriving in North Haven to determine whether it meets standards for use in commercial zones.

"We are choosy about what soil is used," said Duva. "It has to be good enough to be used on a commercial property."

In addition to a base level of commercial-grade soil, the DEP pointed out that the site will be capped with two feet of sediment deemed suitable for use in residential districts.

Waste materials from Newhall containing toxic substances, an estimated 15 to 30-percent of the sediment to be removed in the cleanup effort according to the DEP, will be moved to landfills out of state, as Connecticut has no sites certified to receive contaminated soil.

An extended question-and-answer session followed the DEP's presentation. First Selectman Michael Freda asked whether soil from the capped Tire Pond could seep into the neighboring Quinnipiac River.

Duva responded by saying that since the Tire Pond was originally a clay quarry, its walls are difficult for water to pass through, and that the exchange of sediment between the landfill and the river was unlikely.

Others raised questions about the reliability of the DEP's testing, as well as whether or not the Department had a back-up plan in place should runoff from the capped Tire Pond prove to be toxic. 

"I'm thinking of the oil spill," said one resident in reference to the explosion at BP's Deepwater Horizon rig in April.

The DEP acknowledged that the agency is not perfect, and there is no way to fully guarantee the success of the Tire Pond closure, as the site represents the only landfill of its kind in the United States.

"This is a bad situation," said DEP Commissioner Amey Morella. "The pond should never have had tires disposed of there in the first place. One of the things we're determined to do is monitor the site to the best of our ability."

"After disasters like the BP spill and Hurricane Katrina, a lot of people are concerned how the government will respond to environmental disasters," said Duva following the meeting. "There's a frustration and a lack of trust."

As the site is improved, Duva added, there is hope that the site will eventually become attractive to buyers who would maintain it in a safe and sustainable way.


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