YARMOUTH – The Friends of Bass River organization is encouraging Yarmouth residents to support Article #11 at town meeting on Monday, June 22.
The article would allow the town to appropriate $5,200,000 for design, permitting, and construction related to the first phase of Yarmouth’s wastewater collection system.
As part of the Dennis, Harwich, and Yarmouth Clean Water Partnership, Yarmouth is expected to have an aggregate saving of 35 percent by working as a tri-town group to construct a wastewater treatment system.
The proposal would also allow Yarmouth to potentially construct the project without raising property taxes.
“Protecting, preserving, and improving the health of Bass River is one of the highest environmental priorities on Cape Cod,” said Friend of Bass River Executive Director Rick Bishop.
“As a habitat to fish, fowl, and aquatic vegetation, the quality of water in the river has a direct impact on the region’s economic and environmental health.”
If the Town of Yarmouth fails to move forward with the project at this time, the organization said it could be five years before a possible reconsideration because of state regulations regarding construction on Route 28.
The state highway department is about to conduct a resurfacing of the roadway and state law prohibits the pavement from being torn up again for five years except in an emergency.
If that happens, Yarmouth’s progress on improving water conditions would come to a halt and Friends of Bass River said there is the real potential of a lawsuit that could cost tens-of-millions of dollars, if not more.
To read the full text of Article #11, click here.
The Yarmouth town meeting is set to begin at 6 p.m.
About CapeCod.com NewsCenter
