Voting Groups Sponsoring District Attorney Forum

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PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The NAACP, Berkshire County Branch, the League of Women Voters of Central Berkshire County, League of Women Voters of Williamstown, and the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts  will host the forum "What a Difference A DA Makes" at their next general meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 3, at 6 p.m. via Zoom. 

The forum is part of ACLUM's public education initiative in Massachusetts that seeks to highlight the key role that the commonwealth's district attorneys play in determining the effectiveness and fairness of the criminal legal system – and to inform and educate Massachusetts residents so they are more aware and engaged in their local district attorney elections.

Through public education campaigns like "Know Your Sheriff" and "What a Difference a DA Makes," ACLUM hopes to educate and empower community members in Massachusetts to demand safer communities and a more just criminal legal system.

After the presentation, those in attendance will be able to ask questions to the two candidates running for Berkshire County district attorney: incumbent Andrea Harrington and Tim Shugrue

This event is free and open to all but attendees must register via Zoom for the link, which can be found here. For more information, visit naacpberkshires.org or, for the education campaign, aclum.org


Tags: campaign event,   district attorney,   election 2022,   public forum,   


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EPA Lays Out Draft Plan for PCB Remediation in Pittsfield

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

Ward 4 Councilor James Conant requested the meeting be held at Herberg Middle School as his ward will be most affected. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — U.S. The Environmental Protection Agency and General Electric have a preliminary plan to remediate polychlorinated biphenyls from the city's Rest of River stretch by 2032.

"We're going to implement the remedy, move on, and in five years we can be done with the majority of the issues in Pittsfield," Project Manager Dean Tagliaferro said during a hearing on Wednesday.

"The goal is to restore the (Housatonic) river, make the river an asset. Right now, it's a liability."

The PCB-polluted "Rest of River" stretches nearly 125 miles from the confluence of the East and West Branches of the river in Pittsfield to the end of Reach 16 just before Long Island Sound in Connecticut.  The city's five-mile reach, 5A, goes from the confluence to the wastewater treatment plant and includes river channels, banks, backwaters, and 325 acres of floodplains.

The event was held at Herberg Middle School, as Ward 4 Councilor James Conant wanted to ensure that the residents who will be most affected by the cleanup didn't have to travel far.

Conant emphasized that "nothing is set in actual stone" and it will not be solidified for many months.

In February 2020, the Rest of River settlement agreement that outlines the continued cleanup was signed by the U.S. EPA, GE, the state, the city of Pittsfield, the towns of Lenox, Lee, Stockbridge, Great Barrington, and Sheffield, and other interested parties.

Remediation has been in progress since the 1970s, including 27 cleanups. The remedy settled in 2020 includes the removal of one million cubic yards of contaminated sediment and floodplain soils, an 89 percent reduction of downstream transport of PCBs, an upland disposal facility located near Woods Pond (which has been contested by Southern Berkshire residents) as well as offsite disposal, and the removal of two dams.

The estimated cost is about $576 million and will take about 13 years to complete once construction begins.

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