Inland Wetlands Concerned about Charton Landslide Plans

Above: Charton Apartments landslide on the evening of June 2nd, showing concrete rubble deposited on most of the area affected by the landslide.

Inland Wetlands Commissioners voted to urge the owner of Charton Apartments to use an engineer to determine the method for stabilizing the slope which collapsed in the late March rainstorm. Ted Charton, the owner and manager of the Apartments, has not provided any detailed plans to the Commission. Bruce Driska, Zoning and Wetlands Enforcement Officer, told the Commission, "Mr. Charton was asked to be at [tonight's] meeting, not sure why he's not here."

Driska said that Charton had placed a lot of concrete rubble on the slope, and planned to put topsoil and grass over this. But he said the Planning Office was concerned that this would not prevent a future collapse of the slope, "We're not sure that's going to do the job. ... My concern is we have not spoken with an engineer about this." Driska said that water was seeping out of the middle of the slope, suggesting the possibility of further erosion and collapse.

Driska said that the level of the Coginchaug in Veterans Park was considerably higher than normal, likely a result of the closure of the River's path by the landslide (sadly, this was predicted on April 5th in these pages by Ed McKeon). Riverside trees, now under water, are likely to die if these higher water levels remain. The decrease in shading will lead to higher water temperatures, drastically affecting the aquatic ecosystem. Moreover, when the trees fall, the extra debris will exacerbate the situation by further reducing water flow.

The State Department of Environmental Protection and the Army Corps of Engineers are considering a project to clear the Coginchaug River channel, which was blocked by the slide, but Driska said that the DEP was concerned that without stabilization of the bank, "this is going to repeat itself."

The Commissioners instructed their Chair, Joe Carta, and Driska to speak to Charton, and if no progress is made towards an engineered plan for slope stabilization, to issue a Cease and Desist Order which would compel Charton to appear before the Commission to explain his plans for stabilizing this slope above the Coginchaug.