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Massport proposes catch‑basin inserts at Anderson RTC after geotextile‑cap limits deeper retrofits
Summary
Massport and HNTB presented a feasibility study for stormwater treatment at the Anderson Regional Transportation Center. Because a geotextile cap and subsurface utilities limit deep modifications, the team proposed installing filter/catch‑basin inserts in on‑site drains and to provide a maintenance schedule to the commission.
Massport presented engineering alternatives July 24 for stormwater treatment at the Anderson Regional Transportation Center parking facility, telling the Woburn Conservation Commission that a geotextile cap and subsurface utilities restrict options that would require deep excavation.
Massport environmental staff and consultants with HNTB said the site is capped under an EPA Superfund agreement and that cap depths vary across the parcel — generally 2 to 6 feet and up to about 10.5 feet in places. That subsurface condition and existing drainage inverts make it infeasible to install deeper structures such as deep‑sump catch basins or bioretention without disturbing the cap and adjacent utilities. "We were unable to make that work in that area," a presenter said, explaining vertical and horizontal constraints.
As an alternative, the team proposed installing catch‑basin inserts and similar retrofit devices inside existing on‑site catch basins to provide pretreatment and additional filtration without excavating into the capped material. The team said there are about 36 catch basins on site and proposed inserting treatment devices in the basins that drain to the sedimentation structure. The devices would include bypass features so the system continues to function until maintenance can be performed.
Massport said it would perform maintenance and agreed to submit a manufacturer‑recommended maintenance schedule for the selected inserts to the commission once a product is chosen. Commission members welcomed the proposal as a pragmatic improvement given the site’s constraints; several commissioners said the option represented a meaningful improvement over existing conditions. Massport also noted it has obligations to the EPA and other agencies under the site’s Superfund cap that limit modifications without additional approvals.
The commission closed the public hearing on the Massport filing after Massport consented to allow extra time for the commission to issue an order of conditions. Massport and its consultants said they would provide a maintenance plan and prefer models that allow routine inspection and debris removal.
