PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha on Wednesday announced a record $11 million settlement with a construction company that illegally dumped contaminated materials in the state. Of that amount, $10 million will fund dental care programs for children in underserved Providence neighborhoods.
The settlement was reached with Barletta Heavy Division, a firm that worked on the Route 6/10 Connector project. Neronha said the company transported polluted materials from a Boston site into Rhode Island and also used contaminated fill from the Pawtucket/Central Falls train station project, where arsenic had previously been detected in the soil.
“To resolve this, they have admitted that they brought contaminated spill from Massachusetts to Rhode Island, and lied about it,” Neronha said during a press conference. He described the case as “unprecedented” in terms of the penalty size.
In 2024, Barletta had already paid $1 million to settle a related federal case. However, Neronha said he pushed for further penalties, citing concerns that the company still does not fully grasp the seriousness of its actions.
“The extent to which they understand what they did and why it matters is not clear to me even today,” he said.
Neronha confirmed that $10 million of the settlement will go to the Rhode Island Foundation. The funds will be used to establish dental health programs focused on children in the Silver Lake, West End, and Olneyville neighborhoods — communities located near the site where the contaminated materials were dumped.
“I don’t know exactly how we’re going to spend this ten million,” Neronha said, “but I know it’s going to be spent on dental care for children who can’t get access to it.”
The decision underscores the state’s commitment to turning environmental justice into meaningful public health support for affected communities.
