Great Barrington — This week there will be two different meetings about the long-troubled Housatonic Water Works company.
The company’s proposed rate increase is currently being reviewed by the Department of Public Utilities.
A public hearing on the proposed rate increase was held on Sept. 26.
At the hearing, DPU Commissioner Staci Rubin did not give a time frame for when the department would decide on the rate increase request.
In a press release on October 31, the company stated “it is pleased to announce” that it will hold its second informational meeting of the year on Wednesday, Nov. 8 at 6 p.m. via Zoom, at this link.
In the press release the company stated that the meeting will “revolve around the topic of disinfectant by-products in the company’s remediation of haloacetic acids (HAA5).”
The problems with HAA5 levels in the HWW system have been going on for quite some time.
In a previous letter to customers back in January, the company noted that “Some people who drink water containing haloacetic acids over the MCL over many years may have an increased risk of getting cancer. In addition, young children (including infants), pregnant women, or those who may become pregnant may be potentially more susceptible to risks from exposures to chemicals, such as HAA5.”
In early August, the state’s Department of Environmental Protection requested the company take action concerning the company’s noncompliance with state drinking water regulations concerning its levels of HAA5.
MassDEP stated that the company violated the state’s Disinfection Byproducts Rule for Haloacetic Acids (HAA5) for the fourth quarter of 2022, and the first and second quarters of 2023.
On Thursday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m., the Selectboard and the Board of Health will jointly hold a special meeting at Town Hall and on Zoom at this link.
As listed on the meeting’s agenda is a discussion with representatives of the Massachusetts Association of Health Boards about “the concurrent enforcement of clean water supply with state agencies.”
Also listed on the agenda is a discussion with representatives “ about the scope of actions of the Board of Health, procedures affecting meetings, Open Meeting Law, Public Records, ethics, jurisdiction, and hearings.”
In a press release issued by citizen’s group Housatonic Residents for Clean Water, written by Kathy Regan, the group wrote that the meeting was requested by the group.
“The main objectives of this meeting are to give the Great Barrington Board of Health the power they need to become more engaged with HWW so they can protect the health of the residents, and for HWW customers to obtain more frequent, objective, accurate, independent water testing rather than the HWW directed testing that has been done thus far to date,” Regan wrote. “The Massachusetts Association of Health Boards’ mission is to assist and support boards of health in meeting their statutory and service responsibilities, through programs of education, technical assistance, and resource development.”
According to the document from DPU, the department is questioning the salaries of two “Supervision/Operator Employees” for HWW, and why the company did not obtain “estimates, quotes, or responses to a competitive solicitation in advance” of starting a storage tank exterior piping capital project.
