Central Mass. water improvement projects to split $152M in financing
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The Upper Blackstone Clean Water treatment facility
Fourteen projects across Central Massachusetts have received more than $152 million in federal and state low-interest-rate loans and grants to improve water quality, upgrade or replace drinking water and wastewater infrastructure, and reduce treatment plant energy use and costs.
The projects in Central Massachusetts are part of more than 185 across the Commonwealth that total nearly $1.3 billion, including nearly $173 million in funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, according to a Monday announcement from the Gov. Maura Healey Administration.
“Our residents deserve wastewater and drinking water infrastructure that fully meets their needs at an affordable cost,” Healey said in a press release on Monday. “This year’s unprecedented investments will go a long way toward improving the quality of life and implementing environmental safeguards that will last generations.”
The projects are being funded by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection’s 2023 Intended Use Plan, and the financing is coming from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund loan program, which is a joint federal and state financing program providing subsidized loans to improve and protect water quality and public health in the state.
The State Revolving Fund is handed out by the Massachusetts Clean Water Trust to finance projects for cities, towns, regional water supply, and wastewater treatment districts, as well as the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority.
“State Revolving Fund assistance is vital to helping communities construct and modernize critical water infrastructure and address the problems presented by emerging contaminants and lead,” Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said in Monday’s press release. “Our administration is committed to protecting public health, and this funding is a difference-maker for local communities and the people they serve.”
To be eligible for clean or drinking water SRF loans, municipalities, wastewater districts and water suppliers filed applications with MassDEP last year. The accepted projects now need to file loan applications and receive MassDEP approval to obtain funding.
The next round of SRF project proposals to be considered for the 2023 intended use plan will open by MassDEP no later than June 5, 2023.
Here are the Clean Water SRF Projects:
Acton - $20.9 million
Acton Great Road sewer project will include the expansion of the existing Acton sewer collection system to the Great Road area of Town.
Fitchburg - $22.4 million
Combined sewer overflow and separation/rehabilitation project involves the separation of an estimated 21,800 linear feet of combined sewers, the separation of two combination manholes, and the closure of three combined sewer overflow regulators that have discharged a combined estimated 39.1 million gallons of untreated combined sewage into the North Nashua River between 2015 and 2021. The project includes approximately 24,100 linear feet of trenchless rehabilitation of sanitary sewers to reduce infiltration/inflow upstream of the three regulators. The project will include green infrastructure, when applicable, and includes stormwater improvements for the 2070 10-year, 24-hour storm event.
Shrewsbury - $9.8 million
Rolfe and Maple avenue upgrades to their pump stations and force main replacement. The purpose of these improvements is to restore useful life of the stations and the force main, as well as improve operator safety and system reliability.
Upper Blackstone Water Pollution Abatement District - $10 million
The project involves the construction of new facilities to provide standby power for the entire wastewater treatment facility, including new standby generators and related elements like switchgear and electrical conduit. It includes additional renewable energy sources to provide resiliency.
Worcester - Two projects totaling $20.3 million
Quinsigamond Avenue will cost $14.1 million and include upgrades to the combined sewer overflow and storage treatment facility to maintain, upgrade, and extend the service life of the facility. The upgrades focus on the replacement of aged systems that have exceeded their useful life and includes improvements to wastewater process, electrical system, HVAC, plumbing, instrumentation and controls, structural, civil site features, architectural, fire detection, protection, and alarm system, and comprehensive active flood proofing of the building. The proposed upgrades will reduce the risk of an interruption to operation, ensuring the facility continues to meet the discharge requirements of its pollutant discharge permit and provide proper overall standard of care.
Lake Avenue pump station improvements will cost $6.2 million and consist of the removal and replacement of existing sewage pumps, and their corresponding equipment not rated for submersible conditions to prevent damage due to flooding, reconfiguration of force mains and modification of backup float system, and installing separate cellular dialing system. These upgrades will improve the response time during an emergency situation, reduce the frequency and severity of sanitary sewer overflows into the adjacent lake, and reduce the maintenance frequency and corresponding cost
Drinking Water SRF Projects
Acton - two projects totaling $16.2 million
PFAS treatment at the south Acton water treatment plant will cost $8.7 million and include the construction of a building addition at the existing south Acton water treatment plant site to house the equipment needed for PFAS removal. The completed project will improve drinking water quality by reducing high PFAS concentrations.
A project to help with PFAS treatment at the central Action water treatment plant will cost $7.8 million and include construction of a building addition at the existing central Acton water treatment plant site to house the equipment needed for PFAS removal.
Millbury - two projects totaling $10 million
The Oak Pond Well treatment facility, which closed in 2019 due to PFA levels, project will cost $3.3 million and include the construction of a 1,125-square-foot building and install two 12-foot diameter granular activated carbon filter vessels, with a treatment design capacity of 530 gallons per minute. The new treatment facility will include a backwash waste holding tank and force main to connect to the existing sanitary sewer, and chemical feed systems for disinfection and corrosion control.
The Jacques Wells water treatment facility work cost $6.7 million and will pay for the construction of replacing of the existing Jacques water treatment plant with a new facility with sufficient hydraulic capacity for the proposed wellfield expansion of 1,500 gallons per minute. The proposed treatment facility will be capable of treating source water for PFAS, disinfection, and corrosion control.
Oxford - $2.9 million
The North Main Street water treatment plant will cost $2.9 million and include the construction of a new water treatment plant to address elevated source water manganese levels at the North Main Street wellfield in Oxford. This project is part of a Corrective Action Plan signed by Aquarion Water Co. and MassDEP to strengthen the drinking water system treatment practices in Oxford.
Bellingham - $15 million
PFAS treatment at Hartford Avenue water treatment plant will receive $15 million for a $20-million project, and the work includes construction of a new building to house the equipment needed for PFAS removal and total organic carbon removal.
Franklin - $5.6 million
Franklin well PFAS treatment project will cost $5.6 million and consists of treatment of PFAS detected at the well located off Elizabeth Avenue in Franklin.
Webster - $15 million
Water treatment plants will build new PFAS water treatment plants will receive $15 million for a $32.8-million project and will pay for a meter system upgrade project at the Memorial Beach and Bigelow well sites. Two replacement wells will be installed to improve system redundancy.
Westborough - $6.3 million
Oak Street water treatment plant PFAS improvements will cost $6.3 million to pay for the construction of a treatment process at the Oak Street water treatment plant for the removal of elevated concentrations of PFAS from two groundwater wells, one of which is above the Massachusetts maximum contaminant limit of 20 parts-per-trillion.
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