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Commission presses developer on wood‑chip piles, waste‑oil and prior contamination at Great Pasture Road site
Summary
Commissioners raised contamination and site‑management concerns about a proposed industrial conversion at Great Pasture Road after the LEP reported past detections (toluene, tetrahydrofuran) in isolated areas and commissioners noted large wood‑chip deposits and leaking waste‑oil containers; the application was tabled pending further sampling and management plans.
Steve Sullivan (CCA Engineers) updated the commission on grading and retention‑pond plans for a Great Pasture Road redevelopment. Carrie Hamlin, the project's LEP, said recent records show prior detections of toluene and tetrahydrofuran in specific areas but that most sampling at the site returned nondetect results.
Commissioners and staff expressed concern about extensive wood‑chip piles across the property, potential reuse of fill that could contain contaminated soils, and leaking waste‑oil containers and sandblasting residues observed near storage areas. One commissioner described the volume of chips and the uncertainty of what is beneath them and urged a profile line and depth measurements be provided. Staff asked for a sampling plan, cut‑and‑fill analysis, and a narrative describing how on‑site material would be handled if reused in fills and retention‑pond bottoms.
Hamlin confirmed the primary historical contaminants identified were toluene and tetrahydrofuran and said test pits and prior remediation left many areas nondetect. Commissioners requested specific soil‑sampling depths, documentation of where previously excavated material was reused, and possible removal of wood chips where they could destabilize proposed retention features.
The commission made and seconded a motion to table the Great Pasture Road regulated activity to the next regular meeting to allow the applicant to provide requested test‑pit/sample data, a wood‑chip profile, a fill‑handling plan, and remediation/containment measures for on‑site waste‑oil sources.
Next steps: the applicant/engineer and the LEP will submit the sampling documentation, cut‑and‑fill analysis and a plan to remediate or manage waste‑oil containers and wood‑chip storage prior to the commission reconsidering the application.
