I.   Asbestos in the Watertown schools                      10/23/2019

A.      January 2016 AHERA Report at Watertown High

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has issued sanctions relating to asbestos contamination in the Watertown public schools.  As a result of 2017 complaints raised by then teacher Mary Russo, who state bureaucrats exposed as the whistle blower, the Watertown Public Schools and the town government were forced to conduct a 2017 cleanup that has proven to be inadequate.  It was legally established that Watertown had been non-compliant with federal asbestos safety laws since 1989.  There were - and still are - hundreds of contamination sites in multiple schools. A primary issue involving Watertown High School can be summarized as follows:

1.       Watertown Public Schools officials retained Patricia Riley, an MIT educated engineer with a positive professional record, to conduct an AHERA inspection at Watertown High School (WHS) on December 30, 2015.  WHS custodian John Barry was assigned to assist Ms. Riley.  Both Ms. Riley and Mr. Barry agree that she addressed a specifically limited set of areas in the school.  Limited asbestos enforcement has been a standard practice of state agencies for decades.

2.       Ms. Riley wrote a report: ““WATERTOWN PUBLIC SCHOOLS – FOR FY 16 AHERA REPORTS” document (“2016 AHERA Report” or “the Report”, Attachment A).  It was dated and delivered in January 2016.

3.       The 2016 AHERA Report identified an extensive list of Asbestos Containing Building Materials (“ACBM”) as defined under federal law.  The list included a “Code 4” hazard which is defined as “Damaged or significantly friable miscellaneous ACBM”.

4.       The Riley or 2016 AHERA Report contained extensive instructions under the AHERA law regarding safety and disclosure requirements.  In short, Section 5.0 contained instructions regarding the training of personnel as well as the broad disclosure of the report and the hazards to employees, students, families, and the community.

5.       The 2016 AHERA Report was not published until after a whistleblower (Russo) complaint in May 2017.

6.       According to several WPS employees and at least one student, High School Principal Shirley Lundberg managed a removal operation at Code 4 site and other sites in and around June 2016.   None of the individuals were informed of the ACBM hazard nature of the materials in question.

 

B.      Massachusetts Division of Labor Standards (DLS) response

1.       DLS admitted that Watertown broke laws.  Then DLS declared that there was no Code 4 hazard in December 2015 citing an alleged June 2017 - 18 months later.   Obviously, the witnesses and victims can explain how the site was illegally tampered with during those intervening 18 months.  For Watertown victims, this fraudulent DLS argument causes anger and frustration.

2.       Strangely, DLS fined and sanctioned Patricia Riley and her firm, Enviro-Safe Engineering.

3.       DLS ordered Watertown Public Schools to complete a comprehensive inspection and remediation action in 2017.  WPS and its officials have been spared after aggressive lobbying.

C.      Consequences

It has been legally established that Watertown has been breaking laws repeatedly since 1989.   The public – including students, families, employees, and visitors – have been exposed to a scientifically established set of health hazards that bring life risks that can last a half century and cause suffering and death.   Specific official acts of deception have resulted in cases like that of custodian John Barry and a just-graduated student.   They were duped into cleaning up ACBM contaminants without notice of the danger and in manners that violate the law.  Evidence indicates the contamination identified in the original complaints disappeared as a result of a cover-up and illegal acts.   DLS has refused to hear the victims or see the evidence.  The DLS rationale for its actions is invalid on its face: DLS claims the problem did not exist in 2016 because a subsequent asbestos consultant did not find it 18 months later.

Meanwhile, that DLS favored firm, EFI Global, failed to identify extensive areas of active contamination and multiple cleanups have ensued without legal notice compliance.  Much of it was literally “under the rugs.” Employees and parents have recently identified more areas and had new samples tested that revealed significant levels of current ACBM contamination.  Another custodian was placed in apparent jeopardy in the past few weeks.

DLS protected Principal Lundberg and several other administrators.  However, DLS was really supporting the interests of long-time Watertown officials who have participated in 30 years of admitted non-compliance.  From the Town Manager to the President of the Council to other elected officials, there has been a willful effort to avoid major school remediation and construction costs that inevitably will require Proposition 2 ½ overrides and tax increases.   Some officials and local business/development advocates, who apparently possess profound state political influence, had incentives to bury critical public information.   The state has protected the wrong people; the state has punished the wrong people.

II.  To the Baker Administration: Hear the victims and see the  evidence

The Watertown denials do not help the Watertown community – or even the long-term interests of the government.   The Asbestos laws – like AHERA – are largely designed to disclose hazards and force remediation.  However, those laws also protect governments by limiting liability.  The failure of Watertown and DLS to follow and enforce the laws actually can extend the periods in which victims can make legal damage claims.  The tidal wave of official Watertown denials and assurances are substantive misrepresentations as well as failures of notice.   This evidence will haunt Watertown in its future financing efforts.  What will the cost of false representations regarding municipal liabilities ultimately be to Watertown?

However, the paramount concern is not the money.  It is safety and mortality.   DLS and state authorities need to stop obstructing and start listening, reviewing, and investigating.   They need to hear the victims and see the evidence.

Submitted by:  http://www.wpssickbuildings.com/#ahera_comp 

Over 600 signers 10/23/2019