3 Million Pounds Toxic Waste from Area Companies Dumped in 2011

The Environmental Protection Agency reported that manufacturing companies in Worcester County, including those in Westborough, North Grafton and Shrewsbury, contributed more than 3 million pounds of toxic waste in 2011, according to GoLocalWorcester.com.

More waste is sent to recycling and energy plants than previous years, but some is still sent to sewage facilities. 

Westborough dumped the most chemicals into a public treatment system, said GoLocal, primarily because of GE Osmonics, a wastewater specialist company. "GE Osmonics put 66,000 pounds of a toxic solvent, N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone, through Westborough’s public wastewater treatment," reported GoLocal. "The chemical is suspected of being harmful to a developing fetus, according to the World Health Organization. GE Healthcare Bio Sciences put 20,000 pounds of the same solvent into Westborough’s water treatment system."

"Unavoidable for some companies," some 120,000 pounds of toxic waste was shipped to dumps in Canada as well as in the U.S. North Grafton's Wyman-Gordon topped the list, sending 19,000 pounds of nickel to dumps. And the Shrewsbury company Supercon moved 23,000 pounds of waste copper to hazardous waste dumps, but recycled 94,000 pounds.