C h i l m a r k B o a r d o f H e a l t h
M i n u t e s
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Chilmark Town Hall
4:00 pm
Present: Katie Carroll (Chair), Mike Renahan, Jan Buhrman
Also Present: Chris Alley (Schofield, Barbini & Hoehn); Marina Lent (Administrator-BOH)
Minutes of January 6, 2010 approved as amended.
Harrison (33-114) Public Hearing (concluded) the Board reviewed revised plans presented by Chris Alley which increased the well-to-septic separation from the Iscol (33-98) well to 110’, and the septic-to-pond separation to 90’. The Board approved the construction permit and plan as revised. The Board also requested that Chris Alley follow up to determine whether a clean potability test of the well drilled in 2008 had been made.
Grey Barn Properties The Board reviewed three Disposal System Construction Permit applications which were presented by Chris Alley (S,B&H) to serve existing and proposed dwellings and farm buildings on the properties.
Glasgow (11-52) permit number 09-43 The first is a 6-bedroom system which will serve a proposed 5-bedroom house; the garage is not connected to the septic system. The house will include a separate, screened in porch/gazebo. The soils have clayey material under the subsoil, with lots of clean, coarse sand below, and the system will require excavation/fill of the clay soils. No Title 5 or BOH variances are required. The Board approved the construction permit.
Glasgow (11-52) permit #09-41 A second system will be shared by the existing house, (“Grandma Sylvia’s House”) and an existing barn (the former “Campbell & Douglas” barn). A possible zoning question as to whether it was permissible to have two houses on a 5-acre property was resolved when Town Counsel and the State agreed that agricultural exemptions will allow for the housing of farmworkers. The proposed system can accommodate Retail space, 24 seats, and a possible future commercial kitchen with 1K gallon grease trap. The system is overdesigned by about 50% to allow for flexibility in developing the facility. No variances are required. The Board approved the proposed plan and construction permit.
Trustees of Reservations permit #09-42 A proposed disposal works system on the Trustees of Reservations property will serve the domestic waste of the half-bath in the dairy facility, and a small employee kitchen and another half-bath in the utility barn. It is an infiltrator system with a capacity of 523 gallons. There are no variances required. The Board approved the construction permit application.
Mike Renahan noted that a dairy operation will require large amounts of water; Chris Alley assured him that the proposed system deals with only kitchen/bath water use, and that an entirely separate system will be constructed for agricultural purposes. Dairy wash-out will be a completely separate system, which is currently under development. A system where the dairy wash-out is mixed with manure and spread on the fields will not likely work here, because the cows will not spend a significant part of their day indoors where manure can be captured.
Jan Buhrman asked whether there might be a way of utilizing greywater from the dairy operation on the fields instead of feeding it into a subsurface disposals system. Under review is a sequential septic tank system with filter, possibly with aerator, and discharge either to a SAS or a bark-mulch trough. But the details of the system have yet to be determined. Chris Alley explained that Agricultural systems are not done under the auspices of the local Board of Health, and will be approved by the Department of Environmental Protection. The Board of Health will be kept informed about the development process.
Kenney (18-58) septic inspection report received – passes; pump inspection and as-built plan not on file to enable issue of certificate of compliance; Chris Alley to forward an as-built plan.
Mandylion Ltd (18-53) The owner would like to build a one- bedroom addition to a studio home with 2-bedroom system; Marina Lent will do a bedroom count, and inform the owner that a system inspection of the ’83 system is also in order.
Poole (27.1-109) the Board reviewed a letter to the owner, requesting a septic system inspection within 30 days. Mike Renahan asked that the letter should specify that the system must be inspected by a licensed inspector.
Lindauer (27.1-26) as-built letter received—waiting on FAST maintenance contract to issue Certificate of Compliance.
Feiner (21-72) the Board was not able to determine what the requestor had wanted to discuss with respect to this property and asked Marina Lent to call the owner and find out what issue needs the Board’s attention.
Waste Budget FY’11 The Board reviewed and approved a draft budget for waste disposal FY’11, based on preliminary figures provided by the MVRD.
Waste Sheetrock at MVRD Mike Renahan called the Board’s attention to a notice from the MVRD that waste sheetrock can no longer be disposed of at the SEMASS facility, and cannot be mixed in with other construction waste, but will have to be disposed of separately, at a higher cost. He noted that, in the past, farmers had used waste sheetrock to lime their fields, and wondered if this practice could be reinstated, now that disposal is more expensive.
Unauthorized Use of the Local Drop-Off lot: Mike Renahan noted that the Town has been storing items inside the gated LDO, without prior authorization or even notification of the Board of Health. A trailer from the Fire Department has been placed inside the gated area, pipes for Middle Line Road construction have appeared on the grounds, and the large pile of wood that was permitted to be stored on a “temporary” basis at the parking lot on top of the hill two years ago has still not been removed. This unauthorized use of the facility is creating a significant liability for the Town: the blacktop in the gated area is not rated for long-term storage of heavy machinery and could become damaged, and the landfill capping must be strictly managed to keep it intact and avoid serious
and expensive contamination issues.
The Board asked Marina Lent to draft a letter to the Board of Selectmen, with copies to the MVRD, stating that any use of the LDO facility can only be authorized by the Board of Health and that the items stored within the gated area must be removed immediately. The Board further suggested that the Town consider making the wood available to any MV residents who are willing to take it, and the Board offered to administer public access to the facility for such purpose.
Wastewater Meeting with staff of Congressman Delahunt Jan Buhrman reported on a meeting to discuss funding needs for wastewater-related projects on Martha’s Vineyard from federal stimulus monies. She noted that money is available for “shovel-ready” projects. She also felt that the focus of the group was overwhelmingly on mitigation of nitrogen loading of the Vineyard Great Ponds, and that substantive proposals for prevention were lacking. She suggested that the Board consider putting forward a proposal to undertake more concerted public education efforts around the issue of nitrogen from all sources, including septic systems, fertilizers and others.
Installer Permits 2010 renewals have been issued to: Richard T. Olsen and John Keene Excavation, Inc.
Hauler Permit 2010 renewal has been issued to Maciel & Sons, Inc. The Board asked that Marina Lent obtain copies of the Hauler companies’ insurance covering septage spills.
Tobacco Permit 2010 was issued to the Menemsha Texaco
Annual Septage Pumpout review Marina Lent presented the year’s overview of septage pump-outs in Chilmark. The number of pump-out permits nearly doubled from 2008 to 2009 (from 50 in 2008 to 97 in 2009), possibly indicating that the pumper companies are paying more attention to compliance following a reminder from the Board of Health in May 2009 about BOH and Title 5 requirements for possession of a pump-out permit when transporting septage.
Pumpouts at the Bath House and Harbor tank in Menemsha The Board clarified that the Bath House and the Harbor tank must be pumped out on August 1st annually. Katie Carroll noted that the pump used by boats to pump out their sewage tanks is frequently out of service. The Board requested that Marina write a letter to the Board of Selectmen, Parks and Recreation and Harbor Department, requiring repair and maintenance of the pump.
Invoices The Board approved the following invoices:
- Q4 2009 Gas Monitoring ($61.18) and 2nd half 2009 Water Monitoring ($1,958.68), Total: $2,019.86
- MHOA membership $50.00
The meeting adjourned at 6:05pm.
_______________________ _______________________ _______________________
Katherine L. Carroll, Chair Michael A. Renahan Janet L. Buhrman
Chilmark Board of Health Chilmark Board of Health Chilmark Board of Health
A recording of this meeting is on file at the Board of Health office and available for on-site review.
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