Advocacy group targets Schnitzer on water pollution

The Boston-based Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) says it is filing a suit against Oregon-based scrap recycling firm Schnitzer Steel Industries regarding copper being introduced into rivers in New England.

The CLF, in an early March blog post, says it is “stepping up to protect the Blackstone, the Mystic and the Merrimack rivers from industrial pollution” with Schnitzer named as a company that “processes towering piles of uncovered metal, broken appliances and other industrial wastes – all within a stone’s throw of these beloved rivers.”

Continues the group, “Schnitzer’s own reporting verifies that their facilities add dangerous amounts of heavy metals, including lead, to the Blackstone, Mystic, and Merrimack rivers. In some cases, the company discharges amounts 400 times higher than what is safe for people and wildlife.”

This occurs, says CLF, when rainwater flows through stockpiles and either seeps into groundwater or, in CLF’s words, “is collected by Schnitzer and then piped into the nearest waterway.”

The advocacy group says its lawsuit focuses on 1o facilities, including yards in Attleboro, Everett and Worcester, Massachusetts; and in Concord and Manchester, New Hampshire. “CLF is also suing Schnitzer for its violations at four facilities in Puerto Rico: in Bayamón, Canovanas, Caguas and Ponce,” writes the group.