The fine and the mitigation are part of an agreement that was finalized yesterday morning, hours before the MDE's self-imposed deadline for striking a deal with the companies. MDE officials said if a solution couldn't be found by that time, the state would take the two companies to court.

Nearly a year ago, the county Health Department began investigating private wells in Gambrills after Constellation Energy reported it had found traces of heavy metals - some carcinogenic - in a well next to a sand and gravel mine owned by BBSS. Constellation had dumped fly ash, a gray, powdery by-product of burning coal, into the mines since 1995.

In April, the health department said that 23 wells of 83 tested were contaminated and the fly ash-filled mine was to blame.

The agreement is designed to address citizen's concerns about the health of the environment, to help people who are affected by the fly ash contamination and to penalize the companies, said Robert Ballinger, an MDE spokesman.

When all the terms and conditions have been met, groundwater near the fly ash site will be within federal environmental safety standards, he said.

"What we're doing is remediate to the point where it is healthy drinking water," said Robert L. Gould, a spokesman for Constellation.

The agreement also requires the companies to stop ongoing contamination as well. This may mean some environmental cautions have to be built into the site, Mr. Ballinger said.

"Where there isn't a liner, they have to take the fly ash out, put in a liner, and put it back," he said.

Liners provide a barrier between the fly ash and the groundwater.

Also, up to 40 residences could be provided with a new source of water entirely at Constellation's expense.

Currently, well-owners on Summerfield Road, the homes closest to the BBSS mine, are attached to a temporary hook-up to county water. Constellation Energy is in the process of installing permanent public water access and will pay water bills once the new lines are in place.

"Having all the water updated is what we need to do now," said Rob Scrivener, president of BBSS.

The decree doesn't have deadlines for when certain problems must be fixed, but it does include limits, most 60 days, for when Constellation and BBSS must submit action plans and studies of the site to the MDE.

"It does not end today with this agreement, it outlines the way forward," Mr. Gould said.

Constellation will pay the entirety of the $1 million fine, which goes to the Maryland Clean Water Fund, he said.

The fund helps repair the state's distressed waterways.

In response to the situation in Gambrills, Constellation has begun a comprehensive review of its fly ash management program and is considering whether it may be appropriate to halt operations elsewhere, Mr. Gould said.

The state also is working on new regulations to further control how fly ash is used in Maryland. These new provisions are expected by December of this year, Shari T. Wilson, secretary of the MDE wrote in a letter to County Council Chairman Ron Dillon, a Pasadena Republican.

The MDE also is investigating concerns about the health impacts of airborne fly ash.

Last month, Constellation and BBSS voluntarily agreed to stop dumping fly ash in Gambrills. Currently, there are no plans to resume dumping there, Mr. Gould said.

"If we did, it would not be until we have proper engineering controls," he said.

Fly ash from Constellation's Anne Arundel County power plants is now being shipped to Virginia at a cost of $1 million per month.

Future fly ash sites at the mine will include clay and plastic liners and a leachate collection system for environmental protection, Mr. Scrivener said.

The agreement also requires BBSS and Constellation to form a community relations panel to keep citizens abreast of progress.

But the agreement between the state and Constellation doesn't do enough to protect citizens, said County Executive John R. Leopold.

"I am not convinced that it protects the interests of the people in the immediate site or folks in the way of the immediate plume," he said.

As groundwater flows underneath the fly ash pits, it carries a wave of contaminants that roughly flows southeast from the Village at Waugh Chapel. People in the way of this flush could be at risk, Mr. Leopold said.

The only way to make sure that others are not affected by fly ash is a total fly-ash dumping prohibition in the county, he said.

Last night, the County Council voted 6-0 to ban new fly ash dump sites in the county for one year. The BBSS mine is not affected by the legislation.

Mr. Leopold also said that the agreement doesn't protect everyone who may have been impacted. According to the county, around 45 people have had wells hurt by fly ash while the agreement only helps 40, he said.

However, the fine is unusual and sends a message to polluters, said Brad Heavner, state director of Environment Maryland, a not-for-profit environmental group.

"Certainly it is good to see penalties getting assessed. Too often companies know that they can break the law without getting fines. This is a different way of doing business," he said.

The fine isn't a record-setter, but it sends a message, said Raquel Guillory, a spokesman for the state Attorney General's office.

"It's a significant fine, which means we mean business," she said.