Breaking down wastewater articles and terms

By Aubrey Gibavic - April 5, 2007

The first five articles on the Oak Bluffs special town meeting warrant are for wastewater expansion and improvement projects. They contain some of the highest spending measures on either warrant, and include terms like "primary clarifier" "septage" and "de-watering" - enough to make voters' heads spin. Wastewater facilities manager Joe Alosso explained the various terms, and how passage of the articles will affect the town and it's residents. [Refer also to the glossary of terms and graphic, below.]

The first article on the special warrant will ask voters to approve the spending of $1.1 million to purchase nearly four acres abutting the wastewater treatment plant on Pennsylvania Avenue, commonly referred to as the Leonardo Property. A second article asks voters permission to take by eminent domain the remaining property next to the plant, approximately one acre, for future expansion needs.

Passage of a third article would begin the design and engineering process for a small regional wastewater plant at the Martha's Vineyard Regional High School. In addition to the high school, the plant would serve Martha's Vineyard Community Services, Woodside Village and the YMCA. Voters are asked to appropriate $350,000 for the project, which would in turn be paid by the users in proportion to their use of the plant.

"It's important right now because we have problems with nitrogen entering [Lagoon and Sengekontacket] ponds and the YMCA and high school are both in need of building something," Mr. Alosso said. "It's sort of a unique opportunity to get a treatment plant built that's paid for by the whole Island."

Selectman chairman Duncan Ross said voters might balk at the high cost, but need to know that the projects are necessary. "It's money...that needs to be spent," Mr. Ross said. "I think that's going to generate quite a bit of discussion because of the amount of money that it totals up to."

Another article would allow the wastewater department to adopt certain sections of Massachusetts General Law 40N that would permit them to contract directly with their own staff. The finance and advisory board voted 3-4 against recommending the article, and it could be a point of debate on the town meeting floor, after town council Ron Rappaport recently opined that various Oak Bluffs personal service contracts were unauthorized.

Mr. Alosso explained that the Oak Bluffs plant has two full time employees and an administrator. Despite its relatively small size, the plant still needs someone on-call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and they contract with part-time employees to work these off hours.

"If I didn't have the contract employees, my operators would be on call every other weekend and every other week day," Mr. Alosso said. "It makes for an unsafe work environment. If I only have two full time employees and one of them is on vacation or one is out sick, then I only have one employee, so we're able to use those contract employees to fill in those gaps and allow my operators to work one weekend every fifth week."

Mr. Alosso said he consulted Mr. Rappaport, who told him that going to town meeting was the proper way of adopting of the sections of the law.

A final wastewater article asks voters to approve a shift of approximately $3.5 million - previously approved at town meeting for unidentified wastewater projects - to be used for a primary clarifier. A primary clarifier is a tank that slows the movement of the wastewater entering the plant, so any remaining solids can settle to the bottom of the tank and be removed. Mr. Alosso said this is the most important project at this point for the wastewater department.