MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
Thursday, April 9, 2015 at 3:30 P.m.
1st Floor Conference Room, Town Hall
302 Main Street, Old Saybrook
I. CALL TO ORDER
Chairman Larry Ritzhaupt called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present
Larry Ritzhaupt
Doug McCracken
Michael Momparler
Tom Gezo
Robert Yust
Absent Members
Steve Tagliatela
John Donnelly
Jerry Brophy
Bill Webster
Janice Holland
Town Hall Staff Present
Sandy Prisloe, Environmental Planner
Christine Nelson, Town Planner
Jim Monopoli, Director, CT Regional Area Health District (CRAHD)
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
There were 2 members of the public present.
III. REGULAR BUSINESS
A. Minutes
MOTION to approve the regular meeting minutes of 3/26/2015 with the following addition/correction: on page 4, add text and change the existing sentence, so it reads as follows “Committee members would like to recommend testing of Old Saybrook’s coastal waters in order to collect data needed to determine if proactive closing of beaches following a heavy rain event is prudent.” MADE: by L. Ritzhaupt; SECONDED by D. McCracken.; VOTED IN FAVOR: L. Ritzhaupt, D. McCracken, R. Yust, T. Gezo, M. Momparler; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 5-0-0.
B. Correspondence & Announcements
L. Ritzhaupt announced that there is a meeting in the Borough of Fenwick on April 25, 2015 at 12:00 p.m. at the Fenwick Clubhouse off of Nibang Avenue. There will be a presentation from a representative from the CT Sea Grant Program. There will also be a Coastal Storm Awareness Focus Group.
C. Timelines
Word copies of the draft reports were provided to S. Prisloe who then submitted them to Town Planner Christine Nelson. T. Momparler and D. McCracken talked with Director of Economic Development Susan Beckman regarding the draft report for commerce.
L. Ritzhaupt is hopeful that by the second CC SLRCAC meeting in May, which is May 21st, all sections of the report will be available for review by Committee Members. Committee members will be looking to be sure the draft reports are consistent with Town Reports, that pictures and graphic material is correct and that they agree with recommendations.
IV. PRESENTATION & DISCUSSION
Steve Mongillo, Water Pollution Control Authority
Background, current status and future activities in wastewater management areas
S. Mongillo began his presentation by explaining the history of the septic upgrade decision to Committee members, to share what the WPCA is working on and to give Committee members a chance to ask questions.
The citizens voted through referendum in August 2009 to approve a Decentralized Wastewater Management District Ordinance instead of installing a town wide sewer system.
S. Mongillo gave Committee Members the following handouts: The Decentralized Wastewater Management District Ordinance Article II, 173-18- 173-38 Effective 9/2/2009, the WWMD Bid Process (published in the May 2012 issue of Saybrook Events), the WWMD 2010-2018 Implementation Plan, the Annual Sewer Use Charges 2011 for different cities and towns in CT, a map showing Old Saybrook Water Pollution Control Authority Focus Areas and a copy of the 8/11/2009 Wastewater Referendum Results from the Town Clerk.
R. Yust asked about potential inconsistencies of areas in the WWMD Focus Areas in relation to areas most at risk from sea level rise and flooding.
S. Mongillo said when the focus areas were determined; many aspects were taken into consideration. Old Saybrook was under court order and state mandate to implement WWMD the program. The Plan is supposed to be completed by 2018.
Clean Water Funds were offered to citizens to help alleviate the financial burden of upgrading their septic systems. The loans are 2% for 20 years with 2 payments a year, so the cost becomes much more affordable for property owners.
Records are reviewed for each property to see if the property is required to have a septic upgrade. Preliminary test holes are done on each property. Originally, all properties were supposed to be remediated on site. The decision was made that every property along the water would have an (ATS) advanced treatment system. ATS are more complex, and they remove more nitrogen. There is more surface provided for bacteria, and an advanced treatment system treats waste a little differently than a conventional system.
The permitting process for the advance treatment systems has been complicated.
At the end of October 2014, 314 actual upgrades had been completed. 522 properties (28%) out of 1800, were completed for Phase 1. Inspections are done frequently, and the work has been very high quality.
Sea level rise and coastal storms were not a consideration when this program was first implemented 6 years ago. The WPCA put together a revised plan proposal to the DEEP (Department of Energy and Environmental Protection) for a number of different reasons including advanced treatment properties, time lines, etc. They are now re-considering the idea of a community treatment system which might remove more nitrogen. Hydraulic capability must be determined.
The State of CT has insisted that the WPCA continue to aggressively pursue their present work on the individual systems because at this time it is the most cost effective option, it’s meeting its intended life span of 20-30 years, and it may be possible that the town does not have the capability to meet the standards required for community treatment systems.
J. Monopoli said that conventional systems are regulated through the Public Health Code. It does not take into account what may happen in the future. The Code focuses on today’s conditions. Therefore, it is not taking into account sea level rise. The entire shoreline should take sea level rise into account when evaluating state regulations and Public Health Code.
R. Yust said sea level rise is now being taken into account by the DEEP Commissioner when dispensing Clean Water Funds.
S. Prisloe asked about sea level rise and its relationship to rising ground water levels.
In closing, S. Mongillo said the WWMD implementation plan is important for the environment as well as to comply with the state mandates. He offered to come back to a future meeting to answer more questions and continue the discussion.
T. Gezo would like to add information about the WWMD implementation plan into the draft report. S. Mongillo offered to review the draft report.
V. DISCUSSION
Discuss Draft Report Recommendations and Report Text
VI. ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 5:00 p.m. until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Conservation Commission’s Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee on Thursday, April 23, 2015 at 3:30 p.m., Town Hall, 302 Main Street, and 1st Floor Conference Room.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
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