Concord, MA - Concord Public Works

In 1974 and 1976, Annual Town Meeting established separate Water and Sewer Funds to ensure that the operation, maintenance and capital improvement of the water and sewer systems would be financially viable enterprises. Expenses and expenditures incurred for each system are covered by user fees. The Water and Sewer Division of Concord Public Works is responsible for managing day-to-day operations of water and sewer infrastructure and, as of 2007, the total assets for each system are 18.3 million and 26.5 million dollars, respectively.

Concord was provided with legislative authority to establish a public water system in 1872. In 1874, water from Sandy Pond, Lincoln, was flowing through an early network of water mains to Concord Center. Today, the water system has grown to include both groundwater and surface water sources, a total of seven pumping stations, two major treatment facilities, and a high pressure water main network consisting of over 130 miles of pipe. Two covered storage reservoirs, one located at Annursnac Hill and the other located at Pine Hill in Lincoln provide total reserve capacity of 7.5 million gallons. There are presently 5,436 customers receiving potable water service and fire protection from this supply. This represents approximately 95% of Concord residents and businesses, together with a small number of Acton properties along Route 2A.

In 2004, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (ma dep) introduced the “Water Management Act Policy” along with an associated guidance document which identified new regulatory controls designed to reduce water use across the State. Due to early concerns raised by municipalities, the implementation of this policy was delayed. At the end of 2007, Concord received a renewal statement for our water withdrawal registration which included, for the first time, water conservation standards and reporting requirements. A comparison of Concord’s use in 2007 vs. State standards, noted below, suggest that compliance will only be achieved with renewed effort. The most notable deviation identified relates to the average residential per capita usage which can be exaggerated due to outdoor water use.

The total water production measured during the calendar year was 753 million gallons with an average daily demand of 2.06 million gallons. The daily demand picked up earlier in the spring and lasted longer into the fall, with an average daily demand of 2.5 million gallons between May and October. When compared to the 5 and 10 year averages, 2007 was at or above these levels. The peak daily usage registered in 2007 was 3.81 million gallons as recorded on September 4.

Rainfall rates steadily declined after July, with cumulative precipitation deficits of up to 4 inches below normal for the months of August and September. Low rainfall continued into October and the State issued a drought advisory for most of Massachusetts primarily for fire precautions.

Despite the relatively high residential water use noted above, Concordians continue to be provided with one of the more comprehensive water conservation programs in New England. Staff continues to seek out new and innovative technologies designed to maintain the level of service desired, while allowing for increased water efficiency. This experience has allowed us to provide national representation in a Smart Water Application Technology Promotional Working Group and more local representation on a Technical Advisory Committee established by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation tasked to evaluate the effectiveness of several outdoor water conservation pilot programs funded by an EPA grant. Notable activities recorded over the past year include:

· Toilet Replacement Rebate Program – A higher rebate was added for customers who install High-Efficiency Toilets, which use 20% less water than the current, standard 1.6 gallon/flush toilets. On average, households that replaced their toilets have reduced their water use by more than 10,000 gallons a year.

· Outdoor Water Use – Water-efficient landscape templates and water-wise lawn watering tips were shared in The Water Connection newsletter, the Concord Journal, the Annual Water Quality Report, fliers and the Town’s website. Workshops on sustainable landscaping, organic lawn care, water-efficient lawn care, and irrigation system maintenance were conducted in 2007.

· Misc. Residential Aids and Services – 45 rain barrels were sold, 14 residences had indoor water-use audits conducted, and 12 households received in-depth irrigation system audits. In addition, low-flow showerheads, faucet aerators, rain gauges, and toilet leak detection tablets, provided in part by a grant from the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, were distributed to interested water customers.

This past year, Concord submitted plans to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (us epa) outlining how the Town plans to comply with new rules promulgated regarding surface water treatment and disinfection by-product formation. The Massachusetts Department of Public Health in cooperation with the ma dep announced changes to the water fluoridation program. Concord implemented the new record keeping and sampling protocols successfully continuing to ensure this public health benefit is optimized and safe for all water users. In accordance with ma dep regulations, Concord was also required to test for asbestos and radium-228 in drinking water in 2007.

In addition to these new requirements, all other routine and non-routine testing activities continue to be conducted in accordance with State and Federal requirements at both our sources of supply and within our distribution system. A summary of this information will continue to be made available on the Town website and sent directly to each customer in our Annual Water Quality Report.

Construction of a new drinking water treatment facility was completed at the Deaconess well site located off Old Road to Nine Acre Corner. On July 12, the ma dep performed a final inspection of this facility and issued its final approval to be brought on-line. It has been operating continuously and reliably removing the iron and manganese that naturally occur in groundwater to levels well below drinking water guidelines. This facility houses two high-rate granular filtration systems, an emergency generator and a small water quality testing laboratory. It has been designed and constructed to serve treatment needs for both the Deaconess and White Pond wells, effectively eliminating the need to construct an entirely separate water treatment plant in the White Pond well property.

In conjunction with the construction of the Deaconess Water Treatment Facility, the former pumping station serving the Deaconess well was demolished and replaced with a more modest underground vault. The associated high lift vertical turbine pump was completely replaced when the well was taken out of service to be cleaned and rehabilitated. Due to the advanced age of this well (installed in 1948), its yield remains limited to approximately 500 gallons per minute. Plans are in the works to reconfigure or replace this well to restore it to its permitted yield of 700 gallons per minute.

The White Pond Well transmission main associated with the Deaconess Water Treatment Plant noted above represented the bulk of water main construction activity in 2007. This new 8-inch cement-lined ductile iron water transmission main was installed along the following 12,187-foot route: Hemlock St. to Varick St. to Dover St. to Plainfield Rd. to Powder Mill Road to Peter Bulkeley Road to a cross-country section to Nut Meadow Crossing to Old Road to Nine Acre Corner. The 2,156-foot water distribution main on Nut Meadow Crossing was replaced and upsized as was a 254-foot segment on Peter Bulkeley Road.

The division’s operations crew replaced a failing and undersized 2-inch water main located along Munroe Place, along with all associated water services. This newly installed main consists of 238 feet of 8-inch cement lined ductile iron pipe. In addition to these Town-funded construction efforts, One privately-funded 167-foot water main extension project on Fitchburg Turnpike was approved by the Public Works Commission.

Concord was provided with legislative authority to create a municipal sewer system in 1894. By early 1900 a small centralized collection system was constructed, carrying wastewater from Concord Center via a network of gravity mains to a collection chamber located at 141 Keyes Road where it was then pumped to a cluster of filter beds located approximately one mile away on fields located adjacent to Great Meadows. Over the years, service needs and treatment goals have evolved resulting in a series of collection system expansion initiatives and treatment system improvements. The present sewer system serves over 1,772 customers (35% of the community) and consists of 33 miles of collector mains (gravity and low pressure), two pumping stations and six neighborhood lift stations.

Plans have begun to be developed to address long-term needs for the replacement or upgrades of Assabet Pumping Station (located off Main Street in West Concord); Lowell Road Pumping Station (located near the corner of Lowell Road and Keyes Road) and four smaller neighborhood lift stations located on Park Lane, Gifford Lane, Pilgrim Road, and Walden Street. All of these stations have been in continual operation since the mid-1980’s and have served their designed lives.

Two smaller underground pumping stations were just added to our system and will serve the recently completed Phase I sewer extension project. One of these new stations is located at the intersection of Bedford and Old Bedford Road in East Concord and the other is located at Cousins Park in West Concord. Landscaping and site work was completed at the Bedford Street site.

Notable activities included cleaning and television inspection of the 5,487-foot cross-country sewer interceptor located between Main Street and the Lowell Road Pump Station, and replacement of four sewer services on Munroe Place in conjunction with the water main replacement project. Based on the cleaning and inspection of the sewer interceptor at the Lowell Road Pump Station described above, the division’s contractor tested and sealed leaky joints on 2,720 feet of sewer mains located in cross-country segments between Elm Street and the Concord Public Works parking lot. In addition, one service connection exhibiting significant infiltration was grouted as part of this work. Eighteen sewer manholes were also cement-lined.

Inflow refers to rainwater that enters the sewer system via connections to storm drainage systems (e.g., catch basins, roof gutters, or sump pumps tied into sanitary sewer pipes). The Water and Sewer Division is increasing its outreach efforts to all of its customers, initiating an inspection program of Town-owned properties, to ensure that no Town buildings are sources of sewer system inflow.

Woodard & Curran, Inc. continues to operate the Town’s Wastewater Treatment Plant (wwtp), located off Bedford Street, under the supervision of the Water and Sewer Division. The plant maintains excellent compliance with regulatory requirements, dictated by a State and Federally issued permit. The most recent permit renewal involved increasingly stringent limits for phosphorus, to ultimately reduce phosphorus levels in the Concord River.

Our contractor continued to make progress on a major facility improvement project which is scheduled for completion in early 2008. The project includes the construction of a new building addition to house the innovative CoMag phosphorus reduction system – the first installation of its kind in the world. This technology uses magnetic filtration to remove phosphorus and other solids to extremely low levels. Initial performance results have exceeded the Town’s expectations. Other improvements at the plant include addition of a new headworks facility, replacement of grit removal equipment, upgrades to the septage receiving area, significant modifications to the sludge handling components, installation of new ultraviolet disinfection equipment, improved chemical storage and feed systems, electrical system upgrades, and integration of a Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (scada) system. Design engineers Camp, Dresser & McKee continue to provide oversight during the construction phase.

The Town has identified areas where new growth may be desired to meet economic development and affordable housing goals. To help identify associated wastewater needs, various Town boards, committees, and departments are collaborating in an Integrated Planning Initiative with consultant assisance to update and summarize wastewater and planning issues. The effort culminated in a report entitled “The Status of Municipal Wastewater Treatment in Concord, Massachusetts.” As noted in this report, projected wastewater flows from properties already sewered, along with committed flows from properties previously bettered (assessed a fee allowing for future connection) and approved for connection will cause total flows at the treatment plant to reach the maximum discharge permit limit of 1.2 million gallons per day.