Acting on the Water Commission’s recommendation, the Select Board voted unanimously at its June 21 meeting to apply for a low-interest state loan to connect to the Devens water system rather than build a treatment facility for town water. The commission provided construction costs and operation costs for both options. The board needed to make a decision by the end of June for engineers at Tighe and Bond to prepare an application— to meet an August deadline—for a Massachusetts Clean Water Trust low-interest loan. If the loan is approved, the town would have to vote to fund the project.
In February, the commission recommended the town adopt a long-term solution for ongoing coliform and PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) contamination in the town’s two wells on Pond Road. Those wells are the only source for the town’s water district, which serves about 100 residences and businesses near the center of town, as well as the schools, the library, and Town Hall. Following that recommendation, the commission engaged Tighe and Bond to examine two options: a treatment facility for the Pond Road wells and connecting to the Devens water system.
Thanks to a provision in the Devens Reuse Plan, Harvard has the right to connect to Devens water, provided there is enough capacity. In April, Tighe and Bond Vice President Tom Mahanna told the commission that there is more than enough capacity in the Devens water system and connecting to it would be feasible but expensive.
At a June 16 Water Commission meeting, Mahanna provided detailed construction estimates for both the treatment facility option ($3.3 million) and the Devens connection option ($4.2 million). In addition, Mahanna gave the commission operations cost estimates over a 20-year period for both options. Those estimates included payments on the construction loan, operation and maintenance of each system, and the cost of purchased water (for the Devens option). The numbers showed that the treatment facility option would cost about $1 million more over that time period, mainly because the plant would require two new employees.
In its recommendation letter to the Select Board, the commission said continuing to rely on the town water system comes with additional risks. In 2015, the Water System Study Committee found there are no feasible alternative sources of water available to serve the town’s water district, which limits the town to its two existing wells on Pond Road. The town would also have to deal with ever-changing Department of Environmental Protection regulations and Environmental Protection Agency health advisories, especially for PFAS.
Rules continue to change
On June 15 the EPA issued four new health advisories related to PFAS in drinking water. Two are for levels of the specific substances PFOA and PFOS, which are included in the state’s maximum contaminant level regulation. The other two are for levels of PFBS and GenX chemicals, which are not currently regulated by the DEP. According to the DEP website though, the agency is reviewing the new EPA advisories and will soon determine what steps to take in response.
The Select Board had few questions for the commission at its June 21 meeting, other than to ask if the Devens connection would provide an opportunity to expand the water district. Commission Chair Cindy Russo said a new water line would be installed along Depot Road to connect to the existing system near the Public Safety Building on Ayer Road. She said homeowners have the right to connect to a water line that passes their property, but she didn’t know how many users that might add to the district. The Department of Public Works would also be able to connect to the new line.
