Select Board Won’t Back Wastewater Town Meeting Petition

BREWSTER – The select board won’t support a petition article at the May 5 annual town meeting asking for funds to develop a comprehensive wastewater management plan.

On Monday, Brewster Ponds Coalition President Susan Bridges and vice president John Keith went before the select board seeking support for the coalition-sponsored town meeting petition, saying the town needs to focus more on wastewater. The estimated cost of the plan is $300,000.

The integrated water resource management plan (IWRMP) was put in place a little over 10 years ago. Last spring, the water resource task force, which was established just over two and a half years ago, had conversations with the ponds coalition about updating the plan. With that in mind, the task force requested $150,000 at town meeting, planning to use a portion to complete a review and update of the plan. 

In the fall of 2023, the town voted to support a pond management plan, which would review and address problems with ponds located around Brewster. 

At this time, both the updates to the IWRMP and the pond management plan projects are underway. 

Bridges said the ponds coalition is in full support of both projects, but the lack of focus on wastewater, specifically the impact of wastewater from septic systems on water quality, is concerning. She believes adding a comprehensive wastewater management plan (CWMP) would address that issue and provide more structure around wastewater practices. 

Select board member Ned Chatelain, the board’s liaison to the water resource task force, said the question isn’t whether the town does wastewater planning, it’s what tool is best. 

“We have been using the integrated water resources management plan, which is the most holistic approach that the state allows,” he said. “It’s kind of the gold standard plan.”

Bridges argued that the IWRMP doesn’t have a specific section on wastewater, so the focus is not entirely comprehensive.

“We read everywhere that wastewater represents 80 to 85 percent of the manmade pollution to our water resources, yet it is very unrepresented in this document,” Bridges said about the IWRMP. 

Town Manager Peter Lombardi noted that capital expenditures this year are increasing and the town will likely have the lowest free cash reserve come fall that he’s seen in his time here, meaning there may not be enough funding to move forward with a CWMP. 

“My understanding of CWMPs is that most towns don’t voluntarily take one on,” said Select Board member Mary Chaffee. “They are ordered to by the state because their waterways are so impaired. Brewster has not been ordered to do a CWMP and I think that all of the work we have done so far has protected us from being ordered to do that.”

Chaffee went on to say a CWMP is a runway to sewering, which neighboring towns have spent millions on. 

The decision by the board to not support the article was unanimous.

“I hope that nobody interprets our comments as saying that the town is not proactive,” said Keith. “The town has been proactive on many things and we appreciate that, but there is more to be done to protect our water and we will work together to do that.”