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Woburn is Leading Leather Producer in New England
Woburn is a small decrepit city of 36,000 citizens which needed to be renovated. It is nicknamed Tan City because the tannery was one of its major enterprises then. The abundance of tannery companies also lead to the opening of chemical plants and mahcine shops that were needed by the tanneries. The people of Woburn mostly engaged in menial jobs. (Harr, 12-13) -
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Well G is Working
This well was opened near the Aberjona River and was one of the wells where the townspeople obtained most of the water. After this well was built and opened, the townspeople found that the water tasted weird or funny. (Harr 22) -
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Well H Goes On Line
A couple years after Well G started working, Well H was also drilled. The city and its people did not have enough water and because the wells' water was so cheap compared to paying the state for money, they decided to build another well. (Harr 22) -
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Chloronation Begins
The city started to chloronate the wells, however the citizens then began to complain about how the water tasted like bleach and chlorine and about how the water color was different. -
Wells G and H Shut Down
Citizens of east Woburn sent in a petition asking the mayor to close the wells. The taste of the water was described as bleach, and it had a rusty color due to the addition of chlorine, which was supposed to kill bacteria. The wells were opened again in the spring of 1970, as the city engineer declared the wells "absolutely safe" (Harr 23). -
TCE Found in Wells G and H
Woburn police discovered 184 barrels of industrial waste that were dumped half a mile away from wells G and H. Gerald McCall, the director of the northeast environmental department, found that both wells contained significant amounts of TCE, or trichloroethylene, as well as containing perc, an industrial solvent. TCE is used to remove grease and paint from substances. Both were described by the Environmental Protection Agency as "probable" carcinogens (Harr 36). -
Newspaper About N. Woburn Comes Out
Carol and Anne read a newspaper's front page called "Lagoon of Arsenic Discovered in N. Woburn" (Harr 38) -
Pre-trial: Unifirst is the first company to settle
Unifirst UniFirst, is a company supplies uniforms and protective clothing, as well as restroom and cleaning products such as mops, air fresheners and soap. It was sued by the residents of Woburn for its involvement in contaminating the wells but it settled prior to trial for $1.05 million without admitting responsibility.
Kennedy, Dan. "Death and justice." Boston Phoenix. n.p. Mag., 1996. http://cdn.wallstcheatsheet.co -
Jan Schiltmann negotitates with W.R Grace
W.R. Grace & Company is infamous for its role in polluting Wells G and H, and in 1986 it paid out some $8 million in an out-of-court settlement with 13 families of leukemia victims. this was following a 78-day trial, but US District Judge Walter Jay Skinner threw out that verdict because of inconsistencies as to when the wells had been contaminated
Kennedy, Dan. "Toxic Realities." Boston Phoenix. n.p. Mag., 24 Dec. 1993. Web. 4 Feb. 2015.
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTN -
Jury Selection
picture citation76 prospective jurors were interviewed in Judge Skinner's chambers. The press was allowed to observe but banned from reporting on the proceedings until after the jury was selected. Finally, a jury of six regular members and six alternates was seated.
Kennedy, Dan. "Death and justice." Boston Phoenix. n.p. Mag.,1996. -
Woburn Case Trial Begins
text citationpicture citationIt was one of the most dramatic days of the case.This is because more than 100 lawyers and media representatives were at the courtroom for opening arguments.
Kennedy, Dan. "Death and justice." Boston Phoenix. n.p. Mag.,1996. -
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EPA Reaches Settlement for Cleanup
After the trial was over, the Environmental Protection Agency set out to compensate for the investigation of the two wells and to initiate a fund for the cleanup costs. Six parties were a part of the settlement (W.R. Grace & Company, UniFirst Corporation, New England Plastics, Beatrice Company, Wildwood Conservation Corporation, and John J. Riley, Jr.) for a total of $69.45 million dollars. "Wells G and H Settlement." Environmental Protection Agency. 4 Apr. 2014. Web. 8 Feb. 2015. -
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Site is Still Contaminated
Despite the mass attention this case has received, the site is still contaminated and has a long road to be free of contaminants. The reason for this slow pace is due to the fact that there is no technology currently that can remove the toxins from the soil and groundwater quickly. Also, since the trial the public support for the cleanup process has diminished. "The Ugly Truth: Mass. Superfund Sites Still Toxic Nearly 30 Years And More Than $1B Later." 90.9 WBUR, n.d. Web. 08 Feb. 2015. -
Credits
This timeline was made for a class called Toxic Boston as a second semester WR 150 class at Boston University. This timeline was made by Simisola Olaiya, Sharla Keough, and Zabrina Chang. (Add works-cited)
