I-Team: Plan to clean air around Millis concrete plant gives neighbors hope
MILLIS - Under new pressure from state environmental officials, a concrete plant in Millis has a plan to clear the air. Neighbors credit WBZ's I-Team for calling attention to the issue.
"As the crow flies, those piles…are not that far," said Rusty Cushman pointing across the street from his home. Behind a tree line, are piles of material, that neighbors say, leave a coat of dust all over their property when the wind blows a certain way.
When the I-Team first reported on the problem in June, Tresca Brothers Concrete, Sand, and Gravel said the dust could be from other sources like unpaved roads. But now, environmental consultants hired by the company put together a lengthy proposal to clean things up.
It's a response after the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection slapped the company with a violation, saying an inspector saw "emissions…blowing from the facility" and felt the dust "striking him in the face and eyes."
"It gives me hope. It's progress, which we never had before. It's going in the right direction," said Cushman.
The I-Team spent months looking into the issue and heard from more than a half dozen frustrated neighbors. "Every time the wind blows this way, I'm being buried," said Heidi Waller, who's property is adjacent to Tresca's. "All over my car," said Gayle Parris, who lives across the street. Next door, Bonnie Pride threw her arms into the air. "If it's really windy, you actually, you can see the swirl."
When neighbors expressed concern over what they could be breathing, the I-Team had the air tested. That showed the presence of an ingredient called crystalline silica, something the federal government has strict regulations on when it comes to workers' exposure. Experts say the real danger is when particles are small enough to lodge deep into a person's lungs, which would require follow-up tests to find out.
"It's really concerning," said Trevor Summerfield, with the American Lung Association. "Thank you for taking the time to put a real focused lens on it." He said local officials have not been regularly filing reports on air quality tests. "Norfolk County, where Millis is located, has an incomplete record, the only incomplete record in the state of Massachusetts," he said.
When WBZ asked Millis Town Manager Michael Guzinski about it, he sent an emailed response. "The town is obviously concerned about the recent findings by the DEP and...we will comply with any requests…"
Tresca's plan includes checking air quality more often, sweeping its roads and treating them with water or calcium chloride at least once a day. They also plan to water piles of stored material, lower the height on some of the piles, and cap some of them.
Neighbors say it finally feels like progress. "The boards have gotten involved. We've been able to make progress on different issues involving the same company to try to preserve our neighborhood down here, and it's all because Channel 4 showed an interest and did a great job," said Cushman. "Thank you."