Press Release   MassDEP Cracks Down on Illegal Mattress Dumping in Mattapan

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) has assessed a $17,400 penalty to Geraghty Associates, Inc., which owns and manages hundreds of apartment units in the Boston area, for violating solid waste disposal regulations. 

MassDEP’s Environmental Strike Force deployed camera surveillance along Livermore Street in Mattapan, where mattresses had been illegally dumped. The Strike Force placed the cameras after learning from the City of Boston’s Department of Public Works that it had recovered and disposed of approximately 150 mattresses from the same area on Livermore Street over the past year. The cameras captured multiple vehicles, registered to Geraghty Associates, dumping mattresses on adjacent City-owned property on at least three separate occasions.   

“We appreciate the efforts of the City of Boston and Mattapan residents in reporting this illegal dumping,” said MassDEP Commissioner Bonnie Heiple. “When communities and local and state governments work together to address environmental harms, we get cleaner and safer streets for residents.”

Among the agreed terms of the administrative consent order, Geraghty Associates must conduct a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) to clean up the area and pay for the collection, transportation and disposal of mattresses and solid waste collected from the site once a month for a period of eleven months.

MassDEP’s Environmental Strike Force operates a hidden-camera surveillance program in conjunction with local police and public works departments to deter illegal dumping, protect the environment, and improve the quality of life in communities across Massachusetts. To report environmental violations to the Environmental Strike Force, visit our webpage. Or visit our website to learn more about the waste ban on mattresses and how and where to recycle your mattress.  

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