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Charles D. Baker
Governor
Karyn E. Polito
Lieutenant Governor
Kathleen A. Theoharides
Secretary
Martin Suuberg
Commissioner
This information is available in alternate format. Contact Michelle Waters-Ekanem, Director of Diversity/Civil Rights at 617-292-5751.
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MassDEP Website: www.mass.gov/dep
Printed on Recycled Paper
February 24, 2020
Mr. Joseph Sollecito, General Manager
Mansfield Municipal Electric Department
125 High Street #2
Mansfield, MA 02048
RE: MANSFIELD - BWSC
Release Tracking Number: 4-0028609
Town of Mansfield Electrical Yard
Across from 50 West Church Street
NOTICE OF RESPONSIBILITY
URGENT LEGAL MATTER: PROMPT ACTION NECESSARY
Dear Joseph Sollecito:
On February 2, 2021 the Department of Environmental Protection (“MassDEP”) received a Release
Notification Form ("RNF") which indicates that a release of oil and/or hazardous material has occurred at the
location referenced above.
M.G.L. c. 21E and the MCP require the performance of response actions to prevent harm to health, safety,
public welfare and the environment which may result from this release and/or threat of release and govern
the conduct of such actions. The purpose of this notice is to inform you of your legal responsibilities under
State law for assessing and/or remediating the release at this property. For purposes of this NOR, the terms
and phrases used herein shall have the meaning ascribed to such terms and phrases by the M.G.L. c. 21E and
the MCP unless clearly indicated otherwise.
STATUTORY LIABILITY
MassDEP has reason to believe that you (as used in this Notice, “you” and “your” refers to Mansfield
Municipal Electric Department), as an eligible person, are a Potentially Responsible Party (PRP) with liability
under M.G.L. c. 21E §5, for response action costs. Section 5 makes the following parties liable to the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts: current owners or operators of a site from or at which there is or has been
a release/threat of release of oil or hazardous material; any person who owned or operated a site at the time
hazardous material was stored or disposed of; any person who arranged for the transport, disposal, storage
or treatment of hazardous material to or at a site; any person who transported hazardous material to a
transport, disposal, storage or treatment site from which there is or has been a release/threat of release of
such material; and any person who otherwise caused or is legally responsible for a release/threat of release
of oil or hazardous material at a site.
Release Tracking Number 4-0028609 Page 2 of 4
This liability is "strict", meaning that it is not based on fault, but solely on your status as owner, operator,
generator, transporter, disposer or other person specified in M.G.L. c. 21E §5. This liability is also "joint and
several", meaning that you may be liable for all response action costs incurred at a disposal site regardless of
the existence of any other liable parties. Pursuant to M.G.L. c. 21E and the MCP the term disposal site means
anywhere OHM has come to be located.
MassDEP encourages parties with liability under M.G.L. c. 21E to take prompt and appropriate actions in
response to releases and threats of release of oil and/or hazardous materials. By taking prompt action, you
may significantly lower your assessment and cleanup costs and/or avoid liability for costs incurred by
MassDEP in taking such actions.
You may be liable for up to three (3) times all Response Action Costs incurred by MassDEP. Response Action
Costs include, without limitation, the cost of direct hours spent by MassDEP employees arranging for
response actions or overseeing work performed by persons other than MassDEP or its contractors, expenses
incurred by MassDEP in support of those direct hours, and payments to MassDEP's contractors. (For more
detail on cost liability, see 310 CMR 40.1200.)
MassDEP may also assess interest on costs incurred at the rate of twelve percent (12%), compounded
annually. To secure payment of this debt, the Commonwealth may place liens on all of your property in the
Commonwealth. To recover the debt, the Commonwealth may foreclose on these liens or the Attorney
General may bring legal action against you.
In addition to your liability for up to three (3) times all Response Action Costs incurred by MassDEP, you may
also be liable to the Commonwealth for damages to natural resources caused by the release. Civil and
criminal liability may also be imposed under M.G.L. c. 21E, § 11, and civil administrative penalties may be
imposed under M.G.L. c. 21A, § 16 for each violation of M.G.L. c. 21E, the MCP, or any order, permit or
approval issued thereunder.
By taking prompt actions you may also avoid the imposition of, the amount of or reduce certain annual
compliance assurance fees payable under 310 CMR 4.00.
You should be aware that you may have claims against third parties for damages, including claims for
contribution or reimbursement for the costs of cleanup. Such claims do not exist indefinitely but are governed
by laws which establish the time allowed for bringing litigation. MassDEP encourages you to take any action
necessary to protect any such claims you may have against third parties.
If you are a responsible party and you have reason to believe that your performance of the necessary
response actions is beyond your technical, financial or legal ability, you should promptly notify the
Department in writing of your inability in accordance with MGL c. 21E, subsection 5(e), and 310 CMR 40.0172.
If you assert or demonstrate in compliance therewith that performing or paying for such response action is
beyond your ability, subsection 5(e) provides you with a limited defense to an action by the Commonwealth
for recovery of two to three times the Department’s response action costs and 310 CMR 40.0172 provides
you with a limited defense to the Department’s assessment of civil administrative penalties.
Please refer to M.G.L. c. 21E for a complete description of potential liability.
Release Tracking Number 4-0028609 Page 3 of 4
SITE INFORMATION
Information on file with MassDEP indicates the following contaminant(s) were detected in soil samples
collected from the site at a concentration which exceeded the Reportable Concentrations for Soil Category 1
per 310 CMR 40.1600.
CHEMICAL CONCENTRATION RCS-1
Arsenic 53.4 mg/kg 20 mg/kg
Barium 1,770 mg/kg 1,000 mg/kg
Lead 1,260 mg/kg 200 mg/kg
ADDITIONAL ACTIONS REQUIRED
You must employ or engage a Licensed Site Professional (LSP) to manage, supervise or actually perform the
necessary response actions at this site. You may obtain a list of the names and addresses of these licensed
professionals from the Board of Registration of Hazardous Waste Site Cleanup Professionals by calling (617)
556-1091 or visiting http://www.state.ma.us/lsp. MassDEP has no LSP of Record listed for this release.
Unless otherwise provided by MassDEP, potentially responsible parties (PRP's) have one year from the initial
date of notification to MassDEP of a release or threat of a release, pursuant to 310 CMR 40.0300, or from the
date MassDEP issues a Notice of Responsibility, whichever occurs earlier, to file with MassDEP one of the
following submittals: (1) a completed Tier Classification Submittal; (2) a Permanent or Temporary Solution
Statement or, if applicable, (3) a Downgradient Property Status. The deadline for either of the first two
submittals for this disposal site is February 2, 2022. The MCP requires that a fee of $1,470.00 be submitted
to MassDEP when a Permanent Solution Statement is filed greater than 120 days from the date of
notification.
This site shall not be deemed to have had all the necessary and required response actions taken unless and
until all substantial hazards presented by the release and/or threat of release have been eliminated and a
level of No Significant Risk exists or has been achieved in compliance with M.G.L. c. 21E and the MCP. The
MCP requires persons undertaking response actions at a Disposal Site to submit to MassDEP a Permanent
Solution Statement prepared by an LSP in accordance with 310 CMR 40.1000 upon determining that a level
of No Significant Risk already exists or has been achieved at the site.
If you have any questions relative to this Notice, please contact Andrew L. Jones at the letterhead address or
at (508) 946-2785. All future communications regarding this release must reference the following Release
Tracking Number: 4-0028609
Sincerely,
Dan Crafton, Chief
Emergency Response / Release
Notification Section
Bureau of Waste Site Cleanup
C/ALJ/lg
Release Tracking Number 4-0028609 Page 4 of 4
Enclosures: Department’s guide to hiring a Licensed Site Professional
ec: Board of Health
Board of Selectmen
Fire Department
DEP-SERO
John Handrahan, Data Entry