BCWC Newsletter Spring Summer 24 FINAL

Issue 27, Spring/Summer 2024 Barnstable COALITION CLEANWATER Coalition Quarterly Subsidize To Equalize Faster, Cheaper, Fairer BCleanWater.org

A Note From The Helm SUBSIDIZE TO EQUALIZE CLEAN WATER FOR EVERYONE We all know water pollution is a problem on Cape Cod. Living on what is essentially a sand bar with a sole source aquifer we are surrounded by sea and peppered with ponds and lakes. Sadly, we have mistreated this treasure, relying largely on antiquated waste and wastewater disposal approaches. Our disregard has come home to roost. Most of our estuaries, lakes and ponds are impaired or worse, unusable due to harmful algal blooms. Elevated nitrogen levels in our drinking water indicate the One way or another the cost of cleaning up our creeping contamination from wastewater. The best water falls on all of us. Whether it is fees, taxes, or line of defense has been the treatment of our direct payments, we must pay. Shouldering such drinking water. We think it makes sense for everyone a burden is almost impossible unless we spread to have an activated carbon water 昀椀lter container the load AND involve everyone. If everyone pays, for drinking water. PFAS contamination may be the everyone should bene昀椀t. “canary in the coal mine” with its “slippery” nature In recent newsletters we have shown that new making it hard to eliminate at its source. The individual on-site wastewater treatment systems dangers from chemicals like PFAS have only recently are emerging. Some of these systems perform at been recognized and they may well be sentinels for levels equal to the best municipal systems. The the toxic soup of medicines, personal and household cost of these systems can be a fraction of sewer products we routinely pour down the drain. expansion which may enable a “clean water for Our groundwater and surface water will be all” approach. In addition, distributed individual compromised for decades. We must do better but wastewater treatment could assist in mitigating can’t let perfect be the enemy of good. Expanding our housing crisis by allowing the addition of ADUs centralized municipal wastewater collection and (accessory dwelling units) while still reducing per treatment systems (sewers) must be part of the parcel wastewater loads by 75% or more! “clean up” e昀昀ort even as new individual treatment In the rest of this newsletter, we illustrate systems and other nature-based approaches emerge. some possibilities. Our goal is to challenge the Meanwhile, costs are rising in terms of both money community to think creatively and adaptively. We and time making large scale treatment more seek a blended approach. Sewer in high density challenging. Climate change and warmer weather areas, close to treatment plants; subsidize and worsens the impact of water pollution. incentivize individual & cluster systems, institute State regulations now mandate reducing nitrogen “time to travel” considerations to target where and loads on most of Cape Cod for estuary protection how to prioritize our e昀昀orts. while our local boards of health are tasked with protecting us in our towns. 2 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | Spring/Summer 2024 BCleanWater.org

Everyone Deserves Clean Water The image on this page shows the nitrogen load water wells, and even municipal systems, now in a municipal drinking water well in the town of record nitrogen levels of 5 mgs or more. According Osterville from 1960 to 1999. This one well (there to scientist Scott Horsley, such levels indicate that are dozens in Osterville and across the Cape) as much as 20% of our drinking water is coming illustrates how water quality is deteriorating. Many from wastewater. Exhibit 1: Osterville Well Data Arena Wells 1960 to 1999 Rising nitrogen in drinking water wells t. (mg/L) Dep er t a W ls l ons Mi t s le Mar l vi er t le Os l vi er t en dit: C e Cr Driven by housing density, development, and population BCleanWater.org Spring/Summer 2024 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | 3

The Cost of Clean Water We are beginning to understand more about waters travel to the sea (our estuaries, Nantucket the costs of dirty water as our community faces Sound, and Cape Cod Bay) over time. We rely on regulatory mandates to control nitrogen pollution in a “recharge” by way of rainfall, to support our our estuaries. Further deterioration of water quality, community’s freshwater use. Rainfall on Cape Cod harmful algal blooms in our lakes and ponds, and averages around 48 inches a year. However, we also PFAS contamination in our drinking water result in “recharge” our freshwater resource with wastewater rising costs. Our sewer expansion plan is principally every time we take a shower or 昀氀ush the toilet. This targeting our estuaries, many of our lakes and recharge has led to the conditions illustrated on the ponds are treated with “Alum” as a stop gap, and previous page showing rising levels of nitrogen in our drinking water costs will continue to rise as our water wells. we install more giant, activated carbon treatment As noted, these rising nitrogen levels indicate that systems to control PFAS* (and its related family of a growing portion of our groundwater is in昀椀ltrated chemicals). with wastewater. Throughout most of the Cape, For the most part all water is connected on Cape approximately 10-20 percent of our drinking water Cod. We have a sole source aquifer. Our lakes has gone through a septic system. The dirty little and ponds provide windows into the aquifer and secret is that we simply don’t know what (besides are connected to them. Our ground and surface PFAS) may lurk in our water. (Exhibit 1) Exhibit 2: Approximate Cost Comparisons for Nitrogen Mitigation Approaches Credit: The Nature Conservancy, 2019 Because wastewater is being discharged into our groundwater (aquifer), BCWC believes all wastewater should be treated to a higher standard to protect all water resources for future generations and for all of us. 4 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | Spring/Summer 2024 BCleanWater.org

Sewer Expansion Is Critical, But That Alone Will Not Address All Our Wastewater Challenges OUR CAPITAL INVESTMENT PLAN (CIP) FOR THE TOWN #1 IS MAINLY WATER AND WASTEWATER RELATED. THE COSTS ARE ENORMOUS. SEWER EXPANSION FINANCING WILL CWMP ANNUAL DEBT SERVICE EXPLODES DRIVE TOWN DEBT UP DRAMATICALLY. FROM CURRENT LEVELS #2 AND #3 INFLATION CONTINUES TO DRIVE SUBSTANTIAL COST INCREASES #4 Credit: Town of Barnstable Comprehensive Financial Advisory Committee (CFAC) Report, Approved: March 15, 2024. CFAC email: [email protected] BCleanWater.org Spring/Summer 2024 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | 5

Sewer Expansion Plan Update TOWN OF BARNSTABLE COMPREHENSIVE WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT PLAN FY2023 SEWER EXPANSION PLAN UPDATE WHERE DO YOU LIVE? 0-10 Years 10-20 Years 20-30 Years Phase Phase Phase One is RED Two Three area on in GREEN in YELLOW the Map Most alarming is that the areas in WHITE, representing almost half of the households, receive no upgraded wastewater treatment EVERYONE DESERVES CLEAN WATER 6 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | Spring/Summer 2024 BCleanWater.org

Estuary Protection? Or Water Protection? TOWN OF BARNSTABLE COMPREHENSIVE WASTEWATER MANAGEMENT PLAN FY2023 SEWER EXPANSION PLAN UPDATE WHERE DO YOU LIVE? BCleanWater.org Spring/Summer 2024 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | 7

Proposition Overrides All town taxpayers will be asked to shoulder the burden of sewer expansion. If all 3 phases are included, multiple tax increases will be needed. Yet the town’s history of Proposition 2½ overrides is not comforting: Appendix 2 Appendix 2 Appendix 2 Barnstable Proposition 2½ Voting History since the year 1999 Appendix 2 Barnstable Proposition 2½ Voting History since the year 1999 Barnstable Proposition 2½ Voting History since the year 1999 Barnstable Proposition 2½ Voting History since the year 1999 Exhibit 3: ands) / Household t ($ thous os C 8 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | Spring/Summer 2024 BCleanWater.org

Adaptive Management and Plan “B” Funding for the 30-year sewer plan is far from percentage of our drinking water assets are being certain. That is why we need a “Plan B”. For our “recharged” with wastewater. How safe can that be? wastewater challenges in Barnstable and on Cape BCWC believes we must do our best to address all Cod, only 昀氀exible, creative and adaptive thinking can wastewater on our peninsula. Everyone deserves get us to a place where we can all enjoy clean water. treated wastewater and clean water and the map on On the previous pages we illustrated the precipitous the previous page shows the limits of the current rising costs of sewer expansion in the town of plan in Barnstable. The three-phase plan will require Barnstable. Furthermore, the regulations to date are town wide support and multiple Proposition 2 ½ focused on estuary protection, not on our freshwater tax overrides. According to our math, decades and assets like lakes and ponds. Drinking water is “safe” billions of dollars on, almost half of Barnstable’s according to current standards, but the issues with households will not have upgraded wastewater the forever chemicals known as PFAS has taught treatment. How will these citizens vote? us a lesson about how things change, and a rising Tax Payers, Sewer Connections and Housing Units Taxpayers Who Receive No Wastewater 20,000 Treatment { 2050s* 2040s* 2030s Credit: BCWC ** The town has indicated that the three phase, 30-year sewer plan will connect approximately 11,100 homes. Here we adjust the connections in Phases 2 and 3 to account for the CFAC Phase 1 connection forecast of 3,534 down from last year’s 4,039 and a previous number of 4,571. BCleanWater.org Spring/Summer 2024 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | 9

PLAN B: Subsidize to Equalize – Faster, Cheaper, Fairer Let’s “stop the clock” at the end of Phase 1 in 2031 or recently approved by MADEP as a ‘Best Available Nitrogen so and see how a di昀昀erent approach to our wastewater Reducing Technology” (BANRT). These new systems hold problem might work. The bar chart on page 9 shows that great promise for the future o昀昀ering a road map like the at the end of Phase 1 (10 years ends 2031), approximately changes we have all seen in technology as centralized 3,535 new households are connected to sewer and 20,000 computing has given way to individual laptops and will have no treatment. cellphones. Distributed technology! Total costs for the sewer connections will currently run The pie chart below shows the current estimated costs for to about $140,000 per household with the individual replacing a cesspool or Title 5 system with one new EIA homeowner responsible for $20,000 (direct “home passed” technology. Some costs illustrated here may rise but some fee of $10,000 plus average connection cost of $10,000). may fall (cleaner e昀昀luent should mean smaller leach 昀椀elds). The plan is for homeowners to be able to fund these On average, we use $46,000 for this Plan B exercise. portions with low cost, State Revolving Fund (SRF) loans. In If we use math similar to what was used for the this model, the community at large shoulders a subsidy of sewer connection (in this case individual homeowners $90,000 per connection. Although $140,000 may seem like responsible for $10,000, potentially 昀椀nanced with SRF a lot, estimates for sewers on Long Island are currently funds), then the community burden would drop to below $120,000 - $200,000 per connection. $30,000 rather than the $120,000 it was for sewer. Plan B: Faster, Cheaper, Fairer But wait, it could get better! New state tax incentives are Even as sewer expansion occurs over the next decade, now in place to provide a tax credit of up to $18,000 over new distributed wastewater treatment technology will four years for full time residents of Cape Cod for a septic emerge. Already two Enhanced Innovative/Alternative system upgrade. For this cohort, the community burden (EIA) systems are performing at levels equal to “best in would drop to $18,000. We estimate that about half of the class” municipal wastewater treatment plants. They were residents in our town are eligible for this tax incentive. $44,000 - $48,000 Average Range of Capital Costs for Full EIA (3- or 4-Bedroom Capacity) Credit: BCWC 10 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | Spring/Summer 2024 BCleanWater.org

New Math: Wastewater Treatment for Everyone While there are many moving parts to solving our wastewater challenge, for this exercise we will keep things simple. It is true that the “devil is in the details” but a simple approach provides a great starting point! Town of Barnstable Holistic Plan using Enhanced Individual total housing units: 27,000 Alternative systems (EIA) End of Phase 1 (From CFAC Report) • Current Phase 1 estimate of 3,534 sewer year 2030-2033: (new sewer connections) 3,534 connections= $500 million. • Current Town sewer connections: 3,220. Current sewer connections: 3,220 • Plan B. Option 1: STANDARD OPTION - 10,000 EIAs NO wastewater treatment: 20,000 at cost to Town of $180 million. ($46,000 per household. Homeowner pays $10,000, Phase 1 is estimated to cost the town $500 million state tax credit of $18,000, Town SUBSIDY of $18,000.) dollars. Phases 2 & 3, which are slated for years 10 to 30 • Plan B. Option 2: THE AFFORDABLE OPTION - of the plan (2033 t0 2053), may cost well over $2 billion 10,000 EIAs at a cost to town of $340 million. when you adjust for 昀椀nancing costs and in昀氀ation. ($46,000 per household. Homeowner pays monthly In this plan, the ~13,000 homes which exist in the 昀椀nance charge of $60 to cover $12,000 of SRF “white space” in the map on pages 6 & 7, receive no borrowings. Town SUBSIDY of $34,000.) wastewater treatment. Many of these homes are also All 27,000 households receive wastewater treatment. on private household water wells. For these families, their household water wells, and waste disposal Total cost: $1,040,000. cesspools or Title 5 septic systems are often only about 100 ft. apart. Simply put: Comparative Analysis Using Bar Graph (Exhibit 2, Page 8) Phase 1 connects 3,534 households for $500 million and New Math postulates 20,000 EIA wastewater Massachusetts Estuary Plan with Sewer Only treatment systems for $520 million dollars! • Current Phase 1 estimate: 3,534 sewer connections= $500 million. A CARROT AND A STICK • BCWC projections for Phases 2 & 3: Cape Cod should not have any cesspools or Title 5 7,550 connections= $2 billion. systems. Estuary protection regulations from Mass • Current Town sewer connections: 3,220. DEP are a start, but only that. Local municipalities and boards of health should work to a higher standard and • Total Town sewer connections: 3,220 (Current) provide incentives as well as regulations to promote + 3,534 (Phase 1) + 7,550 (Phase 2&3) = 14,304. This clean water for all. represents 53% of the Town’s current households. • Total projected cost: $2.5 Billion. Disclaimer: Data referenced in this newsletter is based on available data at time of publication. The amount of any • Untreated households: 12,696 or 47%. State Revolving Fund (SRF) subsidy and/or credit is unknown. BCleanWater.org Spring/Summer 2024 | Barnstable Clean Water Coalition | 11

Non-Pro昀椀t Org. Barnstable P.O. Box 215 U.S. Postage Osterville, MA 02655 PAID CLEANWATER 508-420-0780 Permit No. 58 Coalition Hyannis, MA BCleanWater.org Mission Statement Barnstable Clean Water Coalition works to restore and preserve clean water in Barnstable. BCWC utilizes science as its foundation to educate, monitor, mitigate and advocate for clean water. Board of Directors Save The Date Michael Egan, President John G. Kassakian, Vice President Laureen P昀椀zenmaier, Treasurer Mark C. Curley, Clerk Jack Ahern Edward M. Crosby, Jr. Travis Cundi昀昀 John T. Fallon, Jr. N. David Samra Dan Schwinn Sta昀昀 Zenas Crocker BCWC Executive Director Clean Water Challenge Golf Tournament Heather Rockwell GOLF TOURNAMENT Director of Operations Luke Cadrin st Monday, October 21 Field Operations Manager Hyannisport Golf Club Christy Laidlaw Development Associate Michelle Motley Data Scientist/Ecological Restoration Manager Donate by mail: Donate online at: BCWC Susie Perry, Graphic Designer BCleanWater.org P.O. Box 215 Osterville, MA 02655 Printed on 30% recycled paper. BCWC Golf Tournament