Chapter 45 - The Other Facilities
The state agency’s notice expanded the review beyond Grand Rapids. Three additional facilities—one in Toledo, one near Fort Wayne, and one outside Lansing—were named in the request. All had used Northline or one of its affiliated contractors for environmental reporting.
The board decided to notify those sites before the news reached them through the press. Charles asked me to join a video meeting with each facility manager and employee representative.
The first manager, a cautious man named Reed Lawson, said his records showed no significant problems.
“Have you reviewed the original field logs?” Grace asked.
“I reviewed the summaries.”
“That isn’t the same thing,” she said.
Reed agreed to preserve everything and suspend Northline’s work pending review. The other two managers followed the same process.
At the Toledo site, a worker representative asked whether the company had altered sample dates there too.
“We don’t know,” I said. “That is one of the questions the agency is investigating.”
The worker’s face tightened. “We’ve been told for years that the site was clear.”
“I understand why you’re concerned.”
“Do you?”
I could not honestly say I did. I had not worked at that facility. I had not smelled the air there or watched the drainage channel after a storm. I told her that I would not pretend our experiences were the same.
“We’ll make sure your team has access to the records and the testing schedule,” I said. “You can choose representatives to observe any sample collection.”
That answer seemed to matter more than a polished apology.
The company hired an independent testing firm to assess all three sites. The firm’s contract prohibited it from using any Northline data without verifying the original source records.
Meanwhile, the audit team searched the deleted Fieldstone file for more details. The recovered portion included a list of customer renewals and four facility names. A fifth site had been marked with a red asterisk.
The name was not visible. Only the last three letters remained: …ton.
Daniel believed the file might have been damaged during recovery. The original could still exist on a backup server, but the search would take time.
The board received the first response from the Lansing facility. Its manager had found an old maintenance report describing a spill near a drainage ditch. The incident had been handled by a contractor, and the final disposal record was missing.
The similarities were unsettling.
At the Grand Rapids warehouse, Maria organized a meeting with representatives from the other sites. She wanted workers to share questions and practical concerns without exchanging unverified rumors.
The first meeting was awkward. People spoke cautiously, unsure whether the company was listening or only documenting their complaints.
Then Darlene described how she had remembered the newer gravel near the south channel. A worker from Toledo mentioned a similar patch near an old chemical storage area.
“It may mean nothing,” he said. “I just thought it should be written down.”
“Write it down,” Maria replied. “That’s how we make sure somebody checks.”
The company’s customer contracts were under strain. Two clients had delayed renewals, and the board projected a possible reduction in revenue. Charles insisted that no layoffs would be announced until the testing results and customer decisions were clearer.
He could not promise more than that.
That evening, I sat with Tessa on the back steps. She had been keeping her distance from the work, following the recusal rules. She asked how the other facilities were doing.
“Worried,” I said. “They’re waiting for tests and records.”
“Same as you.”
“Same as the crew here.”
She rested her head against the porch post. “You used to think every problem had to be solved tonight.”
“I still catch myself thinking that.”
“And now?”
“Now I know some things need daylight, witnesses, and more than one person checking the work.”
My phone rang. Grace said the company had located the fifth facility in the Fieldstone file. It was in Kalamazoo.
May you like
Earl’s hometown.
The file also contained a note beside the site name: Do not include in regional review.
