The Mattapoisett Board of Water and Sewer Commissioners met on Wednesday, July 23 for a brief open session.
Following a roll call by Chair Dan Chase, Water and Sewer Superintendent Henri Renauld began by addressing correspondence with Eversource, where he said the corporation would be performing vegetation control along powerlines near the town’s drinking-water facility. He said the company has committed to using “green chemicals” to mitigate environmental impact. He also stated powerlines would be upgraded during this time. This is in response to an increase in solar farm power generation and the increased transfer of power through cables.
Renauld added there have been problems receiving responses from Eversource following power outages, noting the large storm and outages on July 3. Following the Railroad Avenue pumping station’s power loss, it ran for 27 hours on generator power with an emergency oil delivery becoming necessary to continue operation. Renauld says Eversource mistakenly said the fix was “done” when it hadn’t yet been fixed. He says 16 to 20 hours of overtime was necessary for town staff to handle the situation.
The superintendent also spoke on the office that the Water and Sewer Department occupies, saying it is rented, “has one bathroom, and a garage for equipment which has no plumbing.” He added, “our officers and staff work both water and sewer. They need a facility that’s going to be there for them.” It was added by the chair that equipment is spread “all around town” and lacks a central location, making it difficult and time consuming to solve some issues.
The department’s work on Oakland Street water piping was said to be complete, with water on and manholes covered. Renauld says he has not detected any issues with water quality following the completion of work in the area.
The commission then discussed pipeline replacements at Eel Pond, with the superintendent noting the project has “been going on forever.” He plans on meeting with the main engineer in early August to make plans going forward and making use of FEMA grants.
It was said there is roughly $460,000 left over from work on replacing the East End water tank and waterline in 2018. Issues with the Bay Club tank were brought up, with the commission looking to get quotes for work on repairing/sandblasting it.
The next meeting of the Mattapoisett Board of Water and Sewer Commissioners is scheduled for Wednesday, August 20 at 4:00 pm.
Mattapoisett Water & Sewer Commissioners
By Sam Bishop