CAMDEN — A proposed $210,000 consent agreement concerning dead trees and the illegal application of the chemical Tebuthiuron on private land adjacent to Camden Harbor will come before the Select Board Wednesday evening, Nov. 8, at a regularly scheduled meeting.

The consent agreement between Camden and Arthur III and Amelia Bond, of St. Louis, Missouri, follows a year of investigations by arborists and soil scientists, as well as negotiations between municipal and privately-retained attorneys. 

The consent agreement was signed Oct. 30 by the Bonds, and now awaits Select Board approval.

The Bonds own a house and a parcel of land at 1 Metcalf Road, in Camden. Next door, Lisa Gorman, of Yarmouth, owns a home on another piece of property, at 3 Metcalf Road.

The consent agreement states, “it is alleged that the Bonds trespassed onto the adjacent real residential property owned by Lisa Gorman at 3 Metcalf Road by application of an herbicide referred to as the chemical and/or toxic substance tebuthiuron, also knowns as Alligaire 40P.”

At a July Select Board meeting, Camden Planning and Development Director Jeremy Martin told the Select Board that the, “Bonds [Amelia and Arthur Bond III] have accepted responsibility for what they have done.”

The herbicide resulted in dead trees and vegetation in the shoreland zone, and violated two regulations of town ordinances: Cutting too close to the shoreline and clearing too much vegetation from the property. For that, Camden had issued a Nov. 28, 2022 violation notice to the Bonds.

Camden does not have regulatory oversight of pesticide/herbicide applications on private property, but its land use ordinance regulates tree-cutting in the shoreland zone. 

Maine’s Board of Pesticide Control, however, regulates herbicide applications, and on July 21 that state seven-member board voted unanimously in favor of its own consent agreement between the State of Maine and the Bonds, imposing a $4,500 fine. Click here the Maine consent agreement.

Meanwhile, Gorman and her attorney were also working on a remediation plan for the loss of trees and vegetation, as well as a financial settlement with the Bonds. The latter is described in the consent agreement as “substantial.” 

On July 20, Gorman’s attorney, Daniel Nuzzi, with the firm Brian and Isaacson, wrote to Martin, outlining his client’s perspective. He said the application of herbicide and cutting of tops of a trees was not done with Gorman’s permission or authorization.

“It is my client’s position that the cutting the tops off numerous trees, and applying a strong herbicide on her property was admitted to have been done by the Bonds to improve their view of Camden Harbor,” he wrote. “There should be no misperception concerning a brown tail moth problem with Mrs. Gorman’s property, as none existed.”

Nuzzi’s letter outlined the timeline, saying by Spring 2022, a large number of trees and shrubs, as well as ground cover, were suddenly starting to die.

A Dec. 22 letter received by the town from attorneys for Bonds said: “Amelia Bond reports that in the Summer of 2021, she recalls identifying two dead and/or dying oak trees on the border of the Bond property. Although she cannot recall the specific time, application process, or product, Mrs. Bond believes that she applied a chemical sold under the brand name Alligare to the dying trees.”

The letter said that Bond transported the herbicide from Missouri to Maine in a four-pound bag.

The proposed Camden consent agreement said the Bonds agree to pay:

• All attorney fees accrued by Camden;

• The estimated costs for soil monitoring testing, which will be conducted by Sevee and Maher Engineers, of Cumberland, on behalf of the town on Laite Beach park. The estimate for that project is $30,700;

• Should there be contaminated soil or vegetation that needs replacement, the Bonds would be liable and responsible for associated costs;

• The Bonds are to pay penalties: “Due to the Bonds working cooperatively with Gorman, the State of Maine, and the Town to bring a satisfactory resolution to these violations, the Bonds agree to pay $1,000 a day, per violation for the two [municipal zoning] violations, based on the 90 days between when Gorman began site remediation and restoration (April 19, 2023) and the date the site remediation and restoration was completed (July 17, 2023).” That amounts to 90 days, which totals $180,000.

• Total penalties and fees to resolve the violations amount to $210,000.

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657