The U.S. Attorney has simultaneously sued and settled a civil lawsuit against the town of Ramapo for violating the Clean Water Act during the building of Provident Bank Park in Pomona, home of the Rockland Boulders.
“The Town of Ramapo repeatedly violated the laws protecting our Nation’s wetlands," said Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, in a statement March 19. "Municipalities will be held accountable if they violate our environmental laws."
As part of the settlement, Ramapo has agreed to pay a $125,000 penalty and create new wetlands to replace the ones filled in while the stadium was being built.
According to the U.S. Attorney, some wetlands were filled in during the construction of the minor-league ballpark before the town applied to the Army Corps of Engineers for the required permit.
Then the town ignored the conditions of the permit, which included creating and preserving new wetlands, and instead permitted more illegal filling to be done, the U.S. Attorney said.
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