Published: 12/20/2021 5:25:04 PM
Modified: 12/20/2021 5:24:50 PM
MONTAGUE — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has reached a settlement with Greenleaf Foods, SPC — also known as Lightlife Foods — to address violations of the Clean Water Act pretreatment regulations by its soy-based food production facility.
An investigation conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency found that Lightlife Foods at 153 Industrial Blvd. discharged low-pH wastewater into the town’s sewer collection system, corroding pipes, killing beneficial microbes and causing odor.
The settlement, which includes a $252,000 penalty benefiting the Environmental Protection Agency, orders Lightlife Foods to install a wastewater pretreatment system to help the company stay in line with regulations.
When contacted Monday, Larry Couch, regional health safety, security and environment manager for Greenleaf Foods, said he needed to reach out to company press officials for a comment. A response was not received by deadline.
Lightlife Foods’ regulatory violation — the improper sewage disposal of acidic cleaners and lactic acid used to soak soybeans — is the company’s latest infraction in Montague. According to the town’s website, Lightlife Foods submitted “multiple monthly reports” greater than 30 days after the due dates from September 2019 to April 2020 and failed to “report violations of oil and grease local limits” in January and February 2020.
“Clearly, EPA saw that there were issues that needed to be resolved that were not resolved,” Town Administrator Steve Ellis, acknowledging “at least 20 years” of Lightlife Foods’ existence in the town, said of this most recent violation. “Obviously, when the EPA is involved, it’s because there is a legitimate environmental concern.”
Water Pollution Control Facility Superintendent Chelsey Little said Lightlife Foods’ violations were identified by the Environmental Protection Agency after the Water Pollution Control Facility reported processing issues. She hesitated to isolate Lightlife Foods as the sole cause for the issues, but said the EPA’s investigation found the company’s wastewater pH levels to be at least a significant factor. Rather than have a pH close to 7 — which is the level of pure water — the pH was radically toward the acidic end of the scale, closer to the pH of lemon juice or gastric acid.
“This isn’t like a 6 pH,” Little explained. “It was like a 1 or a 2.”
Little expressed disappointment in how the penalty money will be allocated. She said she’d contacted the Environmental Protection Agency to inquire about receiving a portion of the money to benefit the affected Water Pollution Control Facility on Greenfield Road, but was told there was no longer a program available to do so. The penalty money, she said, will contribute directly to the Environmental Protection Agency’s revenue.
While the town won’t be receiving funding from the settlement as damage payment, Little noted that $169,700 in state grant funding Montague received for a pump station pump replacement, an estimated $229,700 project, contributes to reparation efforts.
Montague’s Department of Public Works is in conversation with the Wright-Pierce engineering firm about spring infrastructure projects, with a condition that assessment and possible repairs to the town’s sewer system having the potential to be included.
Despite repeated issues arising between the town and Lightlife Foods, Ellis said Montague maintains a “very cordial and productive relationship” with the company.
“EPA’s settlement with Lightlife Foods has ensured that wastewater discharges leaving their facility are no longer damaging the town of Montague’s wastewater infrastructure,” Environmental Protection Agency New England Acting Regional Administrator Deb Szaro said in a press release. “The Clean Water Act allows EPA to protect our critical infrastructure and waterways, and cases like these highlight that mission.”
Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-772-0261, ext. 261 or [email protected].
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