Manchester's Mill West. Image courtesy of Google Maps.
One of New Hampshire’s biggest commercial developers is facing a $500,000 fine from the state over allegedly mishandling contaminated soil removed from a Manchester mill project site.
Brady Sullivan Properties will have to pay $50,000 to the state’s Hazardous Waste Cleanup Fund, and the remaining $450,000 to be used to implement environmental cleanup projects in Bartlett, Manchester and Londonderry.
While renovating an abandoned Manchester mill into its 94-unit Mill West luxury apartment project, Brady Sullivan removed soil contaminated with dry cleaning chemical tetrachloroethylene from the site at 195 McGregor St. in Manchester and disposed of it in a gravel pit it owns in Londonderry without doing the proper tests beforehand, according to the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services. When later testing revealed the contamination, the state made Brady Sullivan remove the soil from the gravel pit and properly dispose of it, at significant expense, at a permitted solid waste facility.
Under the terms of the agreement, Brady Sullivan will pay $200,000 to the town of Bartlett to fund development of a riverbank stabilization design and landfill closure design for town’s former landfill. The company will also pay $125,000 to the city of Manchester to fund a cleanup at a city-owned lot associated with a hotel and parking garage development. Finally, Brady Sullivan will pay $125,000 to the town of Londonderry to fund site assessment and cleanup planning at a former apple orchard property that is subject to a conservation easement held by the town.
“It is vital that developers and contractors comply with all applicable laws and rules relative to management of contaminated soils, particularly at former commercial and industrial properties where hazardous materials have previously been in use,” Department of Environmental Services Commissioner Robert R. Scott said in a statement.
The same building has been a source of environmental complaints before. In 2017, several dozen residents claimed a 2015 construction project created dangerous levels of lead dust in their units, leaving them with elevated blood lead levels. The residents later settled for an undisclosed amount, New Hampshire Public Radio reported at the time.
