In his Water Treatment Plant update during Tuesday’s monthly meeting of the Mattapoisett River Valley Water District Commission, Tata & Howard engineer Jon Gregory summarized the past couple of months of final review regarding the main elements of a construction project that later this year will replace a long-standing, water-filtration system with new, state-of-the-art equipment for the plant that services Fairhaven, Mattapoisett, Marion and, to a lesser extent, Rochester.
Skids, lead items, membranes, final shop drawings and conference calls with Kovalus (formerly Koch Separation Systems) were referenced, and Gregory said that approval has been finalized so the skids are in production. UV disinfection, a meeting with Atlantium Technologies and a review of system requirements were noted.
The MRV is working with an electrical subconsultant. When ready, Phase 2 design details will be submitted for Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection approval.
Tata & Howard is also working with the MRV on a system-bypass plan for during the construction, and each town is providing its own water-testing results.
The MRV anticipates an on-schedule delivery of the skids in September or October, but that will require verification.
In his Water Treatment Plant update, MRV District Commission Vice Chairman Henri Renauld said the plant is running “okay” but recently had some problems including a backwash valve that affected some communities. The matter has been straightened out, and a new valve is coming to the plant. Renauld has been very happy with the work provided by DG Services to fix the heaters.
In his Treasurer’s Report to the commission, Renauld said February was a small month with a $12,352 expense for sodium hydroxide and several small bills totaling $32,307.14. The commission voted to approve.
The first quarterly, raw-water, pumping meeting with the subcommittee of 2024 will be held on April 9 at 3:00 pm, 30 minutes before the next scheduled meeting of the MRV committee and commission.
Gregory said Tata & Howard is waiting for preparation of a transcript in order to move forward with the appellate review of a water-meter litigation case. The company is angling for FY25 chemical bids for the district in May.
Member Meghan Davis offered a reminder that the task of arranging an audit of the MRV’s annual financial records be completed.
As is always the case, the MRV Water Supply Protection Advisory Committee met immediately before the commission, and Treasurer Jeff Furtado reported on his research into a certificate-of-deposit (CD) account for the committee’s bank account that had a total ending balance of $197,734.28 for February.
Member David Pierce had suggested at the MRV’s February meeting that interest rates on CD’s have increased, providing an opportunity to capitalize.
Jeff Furtado laid out scenarios with Rockland Trust, the MRV’s bank and alternatives offered by others. Given the familiarity and success, the membership felt strongly that the MRV should stick with Rockland Trust and voted to move $100,000 into a four-month CD offering a 5.12% interest rate with a yield of 5.25%.
Renauld suggested the amount, noting that the committee is “still keeping almost $100,000 in operational moneys in case anything comes up that we need to do.”
Vinnie Furtado, the chairman of the committee and commission, recommended more than one name on the account. Pierce said the minutes of the vote should also be handed into the bank and recommended an established protocol for certain representatives on the account, including the chairman.
The committee voted its approval.
In other business, the committee voted to approve an ANR application request from Walter Hartley at 52 Wolf Island Road in Rochester. The approval authorizes Vinnie Furtado to write an approval letter saying the MRV takes no issue with the property plan, thus satisfying the Rochester Planning Board’s regulations.
Gregory reported that December 2023 river-monitoring data is available, completing the year and putting him in position to put together a 2023 hydrologic river-monitoring report that he will present at the committee’s April meeting.
The next meeting of the MRV Water District Commission/Water Supply Protection Advisory Committee is scheduled for Tuesday, April 9, at 3:30 pm (committee) and 4:00 pm (commission).
By Mick Colageo