The dike in Machias began as a private toll bridge over the Middle River in 1835 and then became a public bridge owned by the town. In 1866 the state legislature authorized the town to build a dike across Middle River. Since its completion in 1868 it has been enlarged, repaired numerous times and continuously poked, prodded and coaxed to continue to provide safe passage over the confluence of the Middle River and the Machias River into Machias Bay.
      At a public meeting on June 28, Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT) officials fielded many questions from landowners, conservation groups and residents about its preferred method to replace the dike with a bridge. Of the many questions raised, one topic rose to the top by the time the meeting was over -- the impact of two former dump sites in the vicinity and the potential for contamination due to the substantial rise in water levels.
      Since its first public meeting in 2009 to garner ideas to replace the dike and its aged baffle/clapper system, MDOT has conducted feasibility studies and surveys and in 2018 announced in kind replacement as their preferred method. This decision received pushback two years later from federal agencies, including National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). After more studies and public meetings, MDOT landed on the bridge as its preferred method to replace the dike.

Two dumps pose serious questions
      The Machias municipal dump -- a capped landfill since 1996 -- is located behind the current waste transfer station on Route 192. It sits close to the town lines of Marshfield and Machias. According to Marshfield resident and businessman David Whitney, the dump was established sometime in the 1930s. "I remember when I was a kid I would go to the dump to see what I could find," says Whitney. "The dump would get so high, and then they would burn whatever was in there to reduce the pile." Whitney recalls residents of Machias, Marshfield and the general surrounding area used the landfill to dispose of just about anything.
      Prior to the municipal dump there was an old "public" dump used mostly by Machias residents. The dump was situated on land behind the current Hammond Lumber/EBS property. "That was a dump the townspeople used well before the landfill," says Chris Sprague. "In fact my grandfather eventually purchased that land and used it as a junkyard for some time. I know for a fact there are cars buried in there. What else is in there, I one can only imagine."
      The dumps and their potential impact to the Middle River hit close to home for Sprague. He is one of 55 Marshfield residents who will be directly impacted by the rising water levels should the bridge become reality. "My home sits on 90 acres of land," says Sprague. "I stand to lose 80 acres. There are many of us that will lose a substantial chunk of our property, let alone the ability to harvest hay and make a living off of that."
      Wayde Carter, a Marshfield resident, selectman and former Maine game warden, is very concerned about the direction MDOT is headed. Close to earning a degree in environmental studies, Carter has immersed himself on the impact this project will have on the Middle River area. He believes both dumps need to be looked at closely. "I have lived here all my life, and now with me deep into study on the environment, I know that should these two dumps be compromised by increased water levels there will be severe consequences for us here and those living downstream."
      He remembers back in April 1988 the landfill had a tire fire that lasted over 24 hours. "While researching salmon decline, I noticed that they have linked a chemical -- 6PPD -- used to produce tires to kills of both coho salmon and trout in low doses," says Carter. "I know when I was a kid there were piles of tires at the dump, and I can remember more than once these tires would catch fire."
      The antiozonant 6PPD is added to tires to increase their lifetime and is emitted with tire and road wear into the environment. The Puget Sound Institute and American Chemical Society conducted two studies Carter references linking that chemical to fish decline. "Many of those tires were buried in the landfill. Certainly, the chemicals are present in the soil and are a threat to the ecosystem through leachate in the soils," says Carter.
      Machias Town Manager Bill Kitchen says the select board has not weighed in yet on the proposed bridge replacement and is aware of the dumps garnering more attention. "The town has been kept apprised of this concern, is aware of the two areas and has allowed and will continue to allow MDOT unlimited access for whatever research, mapping, sampling and testing they need to do," says Kitchen.

Landfill remediation program
      A 2012 Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) report outlining the history and remediation efforts to ensure public safety regarding municipal dump sites states that prior to 1988 most municipalities in Maine disposed of their solid waste in their own unlined landfill. These open dumps were often located in environmentally sensitive areas and posed public health threats by contaminating air, land and groundwater. Realizing the risk that these dumps posed to drinking water and public health, the legislature established the Solid Waste Landfill Closure and Remediation Program within the DEP.
      The 2.5-acre municipal landfill in Machias fits these parameters and is an unlined landfill. According to DEP records, the landfill was capped in 1996, and the site's remedial or mitigation systems have been installed to prevent ongoing exposure to site contaminants, but routine system monitoring, operation, maintenance are needed and periodic monitoring of environmental covenants is necessary.
      Specifically, the landfill's closure consisted of using what DEP termed a "reduced procedure," which consisted of re grading waste and capping with six inches topsoil over 18 inches of glacial till over six inches of burrow.
      In response to questions about anticipated testing and potential mitigation steps, DEP Deputy Commissioner David Madore says, "DEP is working with Maine DOT to assess the resulting effects, because the landfill is situated next to a wetland where the water level would rise as a result of the dike removal. This ongoing assessment is primarily concerned with potential effects on the landfill's structural integrity and any preventive engineering measures that may be done to reduce such effects." Madore also confirms that the landfill was operational from 1930 to 1996 and that "no testing had previously been performed."
      MDOT Planning Study Project Manager Martin Rooney says MDOT's response to the municipal landfill has been under way for some time. With regard to the "public" dump site, MDOT has no plans to investigate. "We do not plan a sampling or investigating the potential hazardous materials site adjacent to the dike. We do not anticipate this location to be impacted by the alternatives under consideration."
      Acknowledging that DEP has limited information on the public dump, Madore says DEP still plans to not pursue it further. He believes the dump/junkyard operated into the mid 1950s. "The exact waste boundaries are not defined, but it is believed that a commercial business was constructed on some or all of the area," says Madore. "There are no immediate plans to collect samples from that site, since it is less likely to be influenced by the rising water level that would accompany removal of the dike."
      Carter believes it is wrong not to evaluate and test the public dump site. "Quite frankly, no one can know for sure where these water levels will go once the dike is replaced," says Carter. "The maps being passed around are a projection. Should these be off just a little and water levels surpass expectations, then what? It's too late." He confirms that if anyone walks on that property close to the riverbank they will find car parts, oil cans and other refuse. "If we are seeing it above ground, then there is definitely more below ground," he says.
      MDOT and DEP staff conducted a site visit to the capped landfill on April 26. "Based on preliminary site investigative work, including surface geophysics and site reconnaissance, evidence was observed suggesting the landfill is potentially impacting the adjacent wetland," says Rooney.
      DEP confirms that further environmental study is required to better understand this potential. "The ongoing evaluation includes the collection of geotechnical data as well as the collection of groundwater samples at the landfill," says Madore. "No existing groundwater monitoring wells were ever placed adjacent to the landfill historically, so several are in the process of being installed to collect that data. DEP does not have any historic data. The data that are currently being collected will be publicly available in the coming months."

Conservation groups support bridge
      In 2020 when NOAA shared its concerns with MDOT's recommendation for an in kind replacement for the dike, it became clear that fish passage, rising sea level accommodation and salt marsh restoration were at the crux of that concern. NOAA clearly supports the bridge solution.
      At the June 28 public meeting both Jacob van de Sande of Maine Coast Heritage Trust (MCHT) and Dwayne Shaw, executive director for Downeast Salmon Federation (DSF), spoke in support of the bridge, confirming NOAA language. In addition they also both acknowledged the impact contamination can have on any environment, especially one that involves tidal movement and a rise in water levels.
      Jacob van de Sande believes the 300 acre salt marsh along the Middle River is a big deal. Its potential to sequester carbon, its rarity in the present landscape and its importance in providing wildlife habitat make it unique. But, he also adds, "MCHT would not support the bridge alternative if it meant that toxins or sediment from the Middle River would impact clam flats in Machiasport." He agrees that the clam flats are among the most productive in the state and vital to the local economy.
      "The state is investigating any potential threat posed by the dumps," says Shaw. "If there are problems identified, we will review the information and potentially reconsider how dump cleanup and watershed restoration can be accomplished together. This could be a win win in terms of getting the dump looked at for reasons outside of issues related to the tide gates."
      Carter says he is a conservationist and believes deeply in the importance of letting nature do what nature does, but to take an ecosystem that has adapted for the past 100 plus years as mainly freshwater and turn it into predominately salt water is asking for trouble. "That change will kill everything that is there now," says Carter. "I have heard that fish are not getting through the dike clappers," he says. "This simply is not true. We observe striped bass above the dike often. In fact at the recent ATV Jamboree in Machias a gentleman caught a 20-pound striper above the dike."

Where is NOAA?
      More than one person at the June 28 meeting advocated for representatives from NOAA to come to Machias and see what everyone is concerned about. "They would best serve everyone impacted by this, including all of the federal and state agencies, if they [NOAA] would come and talk to us and both hear and see our concerns," says Carter. "This is too important for the future and for all involved not to be all in and see how this current system operates now and why to replace in kind is the better way to go."
      When asked if there can be certainty for a former landfill not to pollute, Shaw says, "We base our positions on the best available ecological science and social science. If new issues emerge, we will reconsider as necessary. The state and federal agencies make these decisions in the end. Sometimes we agree with those agency decisions, and sometimes we don't."
      "We do not have any direct experience and would defer to professionals to assess whether the pollution can be contained and mitigated," says van de Sande. "Regardless of this project, it needs to be addressed."

What is next?
      Officials from both MDOT and DEP say they will continue to work on gathering information and public comment and will publish their findings of the environmental assessment now under way. Included in that assessment is the capped landfill in Machias. "The next public meeting is likely to happen in early 2023 when a draft environmental assessment is ready for public review and comment," says Rooney. "We are also discussing a less formal meeting to solicit public input on the future of the causeway. No timeline for that yet."
      In the meantime Rooney wants everyone to know that this remains a fluid project. Nothing yet has been greenlighted as a permanent plan, and many other state and federal agencies will need to agree on what that end result will look like. "While MDOT is carrying a bridge as a preferred alternative, we are still completing the environmental assessment under NEPA [National Environmental Policy Act]," says Rooney. "This involves continuing to gather and understand information, particularly anything new that could inform and even alter the decision-making process. We encourage anyone with interests or questions on the project to reach out."
      Contact MDOT Planning Study Project Manager Martin Rooney at martin.rooney@maine.gov or 207-624-3317.
      The project website is www.maine.gov/mdot/projects/machiasbridge/index.shtml.