By C. Ryan Barber, January 15, 2014

 

BUZZARDS BAY — After pummeling the ground and pulling out soil from as deep as 50 feet, Bourne has struck gold in its search for a wastewater disposal site that would make way for development in Buzzards Bay.

In recent months, contractors tested soil at a pair of sites — Queen Sewell Park and land behind the Bourne Veterans Memorial Community Center — to determine whether they would be suitable for disposing of treated wastewater.

The studies "did not identify any complications" with the park, according to a report released this month — a promising sign that the town will be able to meet the wastewater demands of new development.

The same could not be said of the 4 acres behind the community center.

At the field and skateboard park, the Weston & Sampson engineering firm found two possibly fatal flaws: The land falls within the recently-updated flood zone and is too close to a site polluted with petroleum from a former gas station.

In the report, Weston & Sampson officials said the state Department of Environmental Protection would require Bourne to clean up the contamination before granting it a groundwater discharge permit.

"That would be very expensive," said Wesley Ewell, town wastewater coordinator.

But for Ewell, there was no use crying over dumped waste oil.

"That's not really bad news for us, because the other site is so good that we don't even need the full site to get the capacity we want," Ewell said about 8-acre Queen Sewell Park. "It could not be more ideal as a disposal area. The ground conditions seem to be just perfect for it. It's all sand for 50 feet down."

Ewell and other Bourne officials had high hopes for the $75,000 study, as the future development of Buzzards Bay will depend, in part, on the town's ability to dispose of wastewater. The town is currently in the midst of a 20-year wastewater contract with Wareham, which accepts up to 200,000 gallons per day for disposal.

But Bourne is already pushing up against that limit, meaning it must build a disposal site of its own to grow. The town wants an additional disposal site with a daily capacity of 335,000 gallons to accommodate developers who have already approached the town about projects such as a hotel and mixed-use complex.

"As soon as they get their plans together, we'll see some things going on," said Sallie Riggs, chairwoman of the town wastewater advisory committee and executive director of the Bourne Financial Development Corp.

"We know there's interest."

Blake Martin, vice president of water resources for Weston & Sampson, said he would like to test the park soil's permeability. But the next phase of the study, he said, is coming up with the money for the project.

"The town is investigating all of its financial options — both public funding and grants and private-public partnerships — to keep costs down as low as possible and get the best economic benefit," Martin said.

Town officials are meeting Feb. 5 for a workshop to "get a better grasp of what the cost would be," Ewell said. The town is exploring state funding — in the form of a grant or low-interest loan — along with public-private partnerships in which developers would build or help pay for a wastewater treatment plant.

"We have the interest from developers and we're already talking with developers," Ewell said. "This is something that could happen within a couple of years."

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Originally published here: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140115/NEWS/401150346