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Conservation commission keeps Select landfill enforcement order open, schedules Oct. 27 follow-up
Summary
The Gardner Conservation Commission voted to continue the enforcement order for the Select (sludge) landfill, keeping monitoring active and scheduling a review for Oct. 27 after state officials flagged compliance issues.
The Gardner Conservation Commission voted to keep an enforcement order open for the Select landfill and scheduled a follow-up review for Oct. 27, 2025, to monitor remediation and any future deposition risks.
The action followed an update from a staff member who said state inspectors have documented noncompliance at the site and that the state regulator offered limited prescriptive guidance. Staff recommended keeping the enforcement order open to allow the commission and responsible parties to act quickly if conditions worsen.
Staff member Justin (conservation staff) told the commission that a March 10 inspection by Dan Karpasta, section chief for wastewater management at the state regulator, shows the facility “is not in compliance” and lists specific operations-and-maintenance deficiencies. Justin said the state prefaced its remarks by noting that private contractors and consultants working with the city should lead remedial planning, and that the regulator’s role was limited to oversight.
“Some of the professionals that are working with the city, such as contractors, consultants, those are the ones that should be making a lot of the proactive decisions,” Justin said. He added that the commission “agree[s] that it is probably good to keep it open for the time being as a device to both monitor it closely and also allow for the parties associated to act quickly in the event that something happens again.”
Chair (Gardner Conservation Commission) moved to continue the enforcement order and set the next review date for Oct. 27, 2025; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
Commissioners and staff reiterated the goal of avoiding another deposition event and said they would continue communicating with the state regulator. The commission asked staff to report back with any new inspection findings or contractor remediation plans before the next scheduled review.
Background: The commission has previously used enforcement orders to require monitoring and corrective actions at sites with documented erosion, sedimentation, or containment failures. On this record, the state inspection form and subsequent verbal follow-up were cited as the evidentiary basis for continued oversight.
