Funding for a water tank mixer and for the design of a chlorination system for the town’s two wells are both on the Special Town Meeting warrant this year. According to Department of Public Works (DPW) Director Tim Kilhart, Harvard is one of the few towns in Massachusetts that still uses “raw water,” or water that is not chlorinated. The recent discovery of coliform bacteria in well #5 and the inability to identify the source of the contamination or remove it from the well drove town officials to put these two articles on the warrant.
Coliform: A history
Prior to 2018, water was tested only monthly, from a tap in Town Hall and at the water storage tank on Bolton Road. But in 2017, the sanitary survey conducted by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) noted that the water storage tank had tested positive for coliform bacteria 12 times since the previous survey in 2014. Coliform occurs naturally in the environment and is generally harmless. E. coli, a subgroup of coliform, can cause illness, but that strain was not found in any part of the water system.
As a result of the numerous positive results on the storage tank, DEP asked for monthly tests at the town’s two wells, both on Pond Road. Last year, one of the wells tested positive for the E. coli strain of coliform, but it was found to be a testing error, and a repeated test the following day showed no coliform. There were no other positive results at the wells in 2018.
According to Kilhart, well #5 tested positive for coliform during routine monthly tests in July and August 2019. It was taken offline in early August, and the town water system, including the tank on Bolton Road, was chlorinated to remove the bacteria. Well #2 is currently providing ample safe water to the town. Kilhart said the two wells, although located only 100 feet apart, are at different depths and draw from two different water veins. But there are no other wells to provide backup if well #2 has to go offline for any reason.
Full-time chlorination
Investigations by DPW workers and well-drilling company Skillings and Sons has so far resulted in a few theories and attempts to fix the coliform problem, but none has panned out, and the bacteria persists in well #5. Kilhart told the Press those investigations are continuing, but it’s possible the town may never know where the coliform is coming from. He added that if the problem cannot be solved, the only solution will be full-time chlorination, and the DEP could mandate that at any time.
Article 10 asks for $42,000 to fund the design of a full-time chlorination system for town water. The money would also cover preparation of bid documents, completing the permitting process, and administering the contract for the work. Kilhart said he has no idea how much a system would cost, and a lot will depend on whether the existing 100-square-foot vault on top of well #2 will be big enough to hold the necessary new equipment, or if a new building would have to be built.
In addition to installation of the system, there will be a regular cost for the chlorine itself, as well as the need for someone to visit the equipment and check on various levels in the system every day, seven days a week, including holidays. Kilhart said he is licensed to do that, but the town would need at least one more licensed operator, or it would have to contract that work out. Either way, personnel would be an additional operating expense.
Water tank
As part of its 2017 survey, DEP recommended installing a mixing system in the water storage tank on Bolton Road because of its low water turnover rate. Kilhart said the tank holds 310,000 gallons of water, but the town uses only about 17,000 gallons per day. He added that water enters and leaves the tank from the bottom, so the water at the top of the tank can sit for a long time. DEP recommends an average age of 20 days for drinking water in tanks, but it found the average age of Harvard’s tank water was 30 days. Kilhart told the Water Commission that problem cannot be solved by lowering the volume in the tank because the Fire Department depends on the Bolton Road tank for an initial attack on a house fire.
Town Administrator Tim Bragan told the Press that in the summer, water temperatures at the top of the tank are higher, and that provides a better environment for bacteria to grow. Kilhart said colder temperatures in some parts of the tank in the winter can cause pipes to freeze.
Article 9 asks for $17,500 for a mixer that would redistribute the water in the tank continuously, preventing stagnation and keeping water temperature consistent. In the event the town water system is chlorinated, a mixer would be required to keep chlorine levels uniform throughout the water in the tank.
Kilhart and Bragan agree that the mixer has been needed for some time, and it is independent of the current situation with well #5 and switching to full-time chlorination. They also both agree that, if Article 10 passes, the design for a full-time chlorination system would go forward even if well #5’s coliform issue is resolved. Kilhart said only about 5% of towns in Massachusetts still use raw water, and most of those are small towns in western Massachusetts. “It’s not a matter of if we go to full-time chlorination, it’s a matter of when,” he said.
