BDA is expected to spend in excess of $500,000 on studies, upgrades, and enhanced monitoring of its air and water pollution control systems as a result of the consent decree NELC negotiated. Photo: Sean D. Elliott

Providence, RI—Last November, Chief Judge Ernest C. Torres of the U.S. District Court in Rhode Island signed a consent decree negotiated by NELC attorneys in settlement of a Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act enforcement suit against Bradford Dyeing Association, Inc. (BDA), which operates a 95-year-old textile finishing mill in Westerly, R.I.

Six months later, BDA has fulfilled most of its obligations under the consent decree, and the air and water pollution control systems at the plant have been transformed.

By December, BDA had already increased the height and exit velocity of exhaust stacks to prevent chemical odors from settling in the surrounding neighborhood. In March, BDA completed two different upgrades to its main boilers: one to reduce soot coming out of the factory’s main smokestack, the other to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

And on May 5, the company notified plaintiffs Toxics Action Center, Environment Rhode Island and Sierra Club that it has installed the new “smoke abater” required by the consent decree to reduce air pollutants from its textile finishing operations, and that it has decided to go beyond the requirements of the decree and put in a second smoke abater to further reduce air emissions
Improvements to the company’s wastewater should be equally dramatic. Highlights include:

• Copper Removal: BDA discharged illegal levels of copper, a toxic metal, into the Pawcatuck River for many years. Thanks to a Copper Reduction Study required by the consent decree, BDA will embark on a product substitution effort to eliminate copper-containing products and chemicals from its finishing operations, and will improve its sludge removal practices to get rid of historic residues of the pollutant.

• Toxicity Reduction: BDA has finally determined why its wastewater is toxic to aquatic organisms; high levels of sodium (from a chemical used in the bleaching process) combined with an absence of calcium and magnesium in the intake water (making the sodium more potent). BDA is starting a project to remove sodium and increase calcium and magnesium.

• Operational Upgrades: Under the guidance of an outside consultant, the company has instituted monitoring of key wastewater control parameters, upgraded the plant’s antiquated wastewater treatment system, and formulated a written operating manual for BDA employees.

NELC will continue to monitor the company’s performance, and BDA will continue to face automatic monetary penalties for any unresolved violations of its air or water discharge permits.

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