EPA orders fine payment

Discharge to the Concord River from the town’s waste water and former water treatment plants over a 30-year period has prompted a $250,000 federal fine, as well as $50,000 in studies to monitor water quality and prevent future violations.

But Town Manager Rocco Longo said, while the town will pay the fine, measures have already been taken to comply with all federal regulations as spelled out by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

The water treatment facility’s problems were reported by the EPA as dating back to the mid 1970s but ended in 2003 after an EPA investigation. The wastewater treatment facility’s discharge problems were reported in 2000.

Longo, who became town manager in 2005, said he has been working with both the EPA and the state Department of Environmental Protection to ensure that both facilities comply with all state and federal water laws.

Kathleen Woodward, senior enforcement counsel for the EPA, confirmed the town’s compliance efforts.

A so-called complaint and consent decree, filed by the EPA last Thursday in US District Court, resulted from reported violations of the water treatment plant’s discharge permit.

The complaint states the town violated the permit by allowing chemicals such as alum to seep into the Concord River – the source of the town’s water supply.

The EPA claims the  old water treatment plant, which was located on Boston Road, discharged sediment into the Concord River that darkens the water and poses problems for natural habitat in the vicinity of plant, according to Abdul Alkhatib, director of public works.

Alkhatib said, in the mid 1970s, the town placed unsettled sediment from the water treatment plant into a lagoon built for that purpose, a violation of the discharge permit.

The sediment discharge persisted until 2003, when the EPA ordered the town to stop the sediment discharge.

According to Woodward, the sediment can darken the water and clog the gills of fish, among other problems.

The EPA also found that, on various occasions starting in 2000, the town violated its discharge permit for the wastewater treatment plant.

The complaint alleges that the phosphorous discharged fostered the froth of unwanted vegetation, such as algae and various weeds that could damage the environment and harm aquatic species.

 

Studies ordered

In addition to the fine, The EPA and the state Department of Environmental Protection will require two separate studies on water throughout the town, with each study to cost $25,000.

The first study, mandated by the EPA, involves the town testing for lead levels in school drinking water as a preventative measure.

The second study, mandated by the DEP, requires the town to test for nitrosodimethylamine, a disinfectant byproduct more commonly known by the acronym NDMA, in the town’s drinking water supply. The EPA press release said the chemical is a suspect carcinogen that is currently not regulated, according to the EPA press release. 

Longo said these studies are preventative in nature, and does not expect the water to contain these chemicals.

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History of problems

The old water treatment plant was taken off-line gradually as the town’s new water treatment plant began operation in May 2006.

In March 2005, the water plant malfunctioned, causing the water pressure to drop and damage the 7 million gallon Tower Farm Road water tank.

In August of that year,  the town agreed to comply with a DEP order to pay $3,800 in fines and outline nearly a year of planned improvements to the town's water system in response to the water filtration plant's failure in March.

The conditions, detailed in a consent agreement between the DEP and the town, had saved the town from litigation by the DEP.

The failure occurred when a malfunctioning wire in a water filtration plant substation triggered a water pressure problem that in turn caused leaks to the town's two water tanks.

In accordance with the consent agreement, the town made substantial repairs to the Tower Farm Road water tank, including fixing hatches on the tank, and repainting it.

 

Wastewater plant eyed

The complaint does not apply to concerns regarding the town’s wastewater plant, although plans are under way to stem the flow of chemicals discharging into the river from the plant.

Representatives at the recent spring Town Meeting approved a $9 million bond for improvements to the wastewater treatment plant to help eliminate aluminum and phosphorous from the discharge into the river.

This project was bonded to come in compliance with state and federal environmental regulations, but Longo could not say whether it will help the town come in compliance with the violations filed last week.

The Concord River suffers from excessive plant growth such as weed and algae phosphorous discharged from the town’s wastewater treatment facility only feeds the unwanted aquatic plants.