Water & Wastewater Commission

Water/Wastewater Commission Meeting Minutes January 9th, 2019 J.A. Provencial Building 1200 Rindge Rd, Fitchburg MA 01420 A meeting for the City of Fitchburg Water/Wastewater Commission was held on Wednesday January 9, 2019 at the J.A. Provencial Building, 1200 Rindge Rd, Fitchburg MA, 01420. The meeting commenced at 5:01 pm Members present: Lenny Laakso, Commissioner DPW Rick Healey, Chairman George Siener, Commission Member Joshua Bedarian Commission Member Steven Bodurtha, Commission Member Others present: John M. Deline., Deputy Commissioner of Water Jeff Murawski., Deputy Commissioner of Wastewater Jennifer Lambert Principal Clerk Water Office Members absent: Michael McLaughlin, Commission Member Item #1 Approval of last meetings minutes: Motion to approve minutes from December 12, 2018 meeting was granted by unanimous vote. Item #2 Public Forum: None Item #3 Water Division:  John gave an update regarding the Administrative Consent Order given out by MA DEP. He informed the Commission that he had recently sent out a change of schedule letter to them. MA DEP did contact us back and approved the change of schedule. They will be sending the paperwork next in which the Mayor will need to sign. Once signed, I will distribute a copy to the Commission.  John gave the Commission a quick update on the Meter Upgrade Project. The Project has been awarded to Neptune/ Ti-Sales Inc. We will have a kick off meeting with them on January 11, 2019.  OSHA regulations/requirements will be in full force come February 1st 2019. We have been working hard to make sure we are in complete compliance. We have replaced a number of equipment because it is out of date and not OSHA compliant. Hoisting straps, slings down to hard hats just to name a few. Fire protection plans will also need to be completed for all facilities and we are working on those.  Lastly, John informed the Commission that we will be looking at the gatehouse at Meeting House Reservoir to see if we need to put in a new intake. This is part of MA DEP Consent Order and one of our items to fix. Another concern is the pipeline from there down to the treatment plant. Would like to have a contingency plan in place if anything were to happen to the pipe, especially the part of pipe that is under Rte. 2 Item #4 Wastewater Division:  Regarding City Code Chapter 147 & “Rules and Regulations”, Jeff informed the Commission that the process is moving forward. We are waiting on feedback & preparation of Council petition by the City Solicitor.  Tighe & Bond Engineers who are working on our CWMP continue to prepare the Phase 2 Report. They plan to finalize the Phase 1 Report after incorporating comments from MA DEP.  Weston & Sampson Engineers who are working on our WWMP per the Consent Decree, began development of CSO control alternatives for the long term control plan using transport and treat costs information along with the Wright Pierce Hydraulic Model.  The SSU project is 71% to substantial completion, 67% to final completion and 83% of the contract price through the end of December. For work completed over the last month or planned work for the month ahead, see attachment.  Lastly, Jeff updated the Commission on the next Combined Sewer Separation Project. Weston & Sampson has completed the review of the CCTV videos that we provided them. They have also completed the dye testing and flooding which are part of the investigative techniques to identify where problems are. They have also started round 2 of building inspections. They are continuing to prepare a private inflow removal policy for wastewaters benefit and for implementation by the City. Item #5 Other Business:  The Water/Wastewater Commission will next meet at 5:00 pm. on Wednesday February 13, 2019 at the J.A. Provencial Building, 1200 Rindge Rd. Fitchburg MA, 01420. Meeting adjourned at 5:31 P.M.