Marion's Town Administrator Paul Dawson announced on March 6 that the swap shop located at the town's Benson Brook transfer station will close, and illegal dumping at the site is at an end.

The swap shop will be closed following liability concerns.

"It's being closed and it will stay closed," Dawson said. "The shop has a long history, but it's become difficult to maintain and regulate. There are no established rules, and people have just sort of...taken over," he added.

That wasn't the real issue, though. "There are liabilities of non-employees in an area with heavy machinery," Dawson explained. "The swap shop has just become more of a burden than an asset."

Illegal dumping at the facility will also be curbed, Dawson stated. "There's a tremendous amount, all sort of material, especially from construction operations," he told Marion's Board of Selectmen.

"Nobody is really monitoring the site," he continued. "On days the station is open, people just bypass the transfer station and go to the back, where they can't really be seen."

The Carver, Marion, Wareham Regional Refuse District, which is in charge of the Benson Brook facility, is adding a second gate which will close off the back of the property to traffic.

"The back will remain closed until it can be monitored better, and until it can be cleaned up," Dawson said. "And that will be a lengthy process."