Nursing Home Agrees to $26,000 Penalty and to Investigate Facility's Groundwater Discharge System

Press Release, Aug 08, 2006

The owner of Cohasset Knoll Nursing Home, GGNSC Cohasset LLC, has agreed to a $26,000 penalty after the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) found the flow from the facility's wastewater system was exceeding its permitted level.

The company has also agreed to investigate infiltration that may be entering its system and to develop a plan to address the violations. MassDEP determined that for ten months [from May 1, 2005 to February 28, 2006] the facility exceeded its permitted discharge of 6,500 gallons per day a total of 50 times.

A permit to discharge to the ground water within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is necessary in order to protect pollutants and bacteria from contaminating groundwater aquifers, which serve as a source of drinking water for many municipal and private wells.

"When you have a persistent and unexplained increase of flow that is exiting a groundwater discharge system, it signifies that the permitee is no longer in control of what is entering and exiting that system," said Richard Chalpin, MassDEP's director of the northeast office in Wilmington. "We'll work with the company to solve this problem, but they have to begin promptly to investigate and address these violations."

During rain events, inflow may be entering the system through cracks, a possibility that GGNSC will investigate using a small camera to inspect its system. The company agreed to develop a plan to remedy the violations and forward to MassDEP for review no later than October 1, 2006.

MassDEP is responsible for ensuring clean air and water, safe management of solid and hazardous wastes, timely cleanup of hazardous waste sites and spills, and the preservation of wetlands and coastal resources.