Sandwich Looking at Second Option for Wastewater Treatment

SANDWICH – The Town of Sandwich, along with Mashpee and Barnstable, are discussing a possible wastewater treatment solution if a proposed plan to utilize a Joint Base Cape Cod facility does not pan out.

The fall back plan would be to construct a treatment plant with disposal facilities at the Sandwich Industrial Park on Jan Sebastian Drive.

The plan to use the treatment facility on Joint Base Cape Cod is under review in Washington and the four Upper Cape Towns and Barnstable expect a decision by March.

“At that time we’ll have a better idea of where we stand and what direction we are going,” said David Mason, the Sandwich Director of Public Health and the project coordinator for implementing of the Comprehensive Water Resource Management Plan.

Barnstable and Converge Partners, LLC, a private company, submitted a proposal last summer to take over the operation of the sewer treatment facility on the base with a plan to treat water from the five communities.

“There would be a combined effort relative to the treatment plant and disposal,” Mason said.

“We are still reviewing that process because there are some towns that need disposal and some towns that need treatment.”

Mason said officials from the towns have been working on the base plan for the last four years to look at the benefits of moving in that direction.

“And of course, the more flow you have with the combined effort, the better economy of scale you have at that point,” Mason said.

Regional solutions to wastewater issues and water quality on Cape Cod will help save communities money.

“When you base it on the premise that the more gallonage you have the cheaper it is to operate – that is the direction we are going in at this time,” Mason said.

The current facilities on Joint Base Cape Cod are owned by the Air Force and operated by the 102nd Intelligence Wing. There are 36 miles of sewers and the installation was built prior to World War II to support up to 70,000 troops.

Now there are only a few thousand staff who work on the base.

The current treatment facility on the base can treat up to 100,000 gallons of effluent.

A regional study presented to the towns last summer indicates that 10 times the current capacity will be needed to meet the needs of the four Upper Cape communities at the facility.

The study, which did not include Barnstable, proposes local capital projects totaling $155 million by connecting the towns of Bourne, Sandwich, Mashpee and Falmouth to a larger wastewater treatment facility on Joint Base Cape Cod.

While the towns await a decision on the base proposal, Sandwich will discuss its second option.

“We won’t spend the money on the design until we have a better idea of what direction we are going,” Mason said.

Sandwich voters approved a Water Investment Infrastructure Fund last May that will pay for projects related to wastewater, drinking water or stormwater issues. It is generated through a 2 percent surcharge on property taxes.

“We’ll be going to town meeting this May asking for money to design the delivery system of the sewer lines in the street,” Mason said. “We know it all has to go in one certain direction, so we are looking at that to initiate that process.”

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