Date: Thu, 8 Nov 2007 15:48:45 EST

Subject: Stormwater Progress Report

I finally got all the emails so far in my address book. I went to the lake during Tuesday's rain stopped in to see Fred. He is getting together some Army Corps of Engineer reports and other data we can use. There are 4 or 5 drains on the Rte. 16 hill just before the Nipmuc Marina. Alan is away this week but some at the Highway Department think they all are connected to that pipe that gushes stormwater, complete with cigarette butts and oil slick, directly into the lake. Over the years, the sediment from the pipe has built up a peninsula at least 15 feet into the lake. The water from the pipe has made a channel through the sediment (I took pictures.) My first thought was to try for a 319 grant (EPA/state money for nonpoint source pollution) to treat and filter the storm water. It is, however, more complicated than that. Rte. 16 is a state highway and under the control of the Mass Highway Department.

Alan does a great job of cleaning the Mendon catch basins but isn't allowed to touch the state catch basins.

One problem is that the state evidently doesn't clean them. (If they did, there wouldn't be all that sediment and cigarette butts.) No catch basin, no matter how high tech, works without regular maintenance.

It may be that there was a vortechnic system installed that is supposed to separate out the sediment. besides the afore stated fact that it isn't going to work without regular cleaning, Mass Highway recently issued documentation that it doesn't work anyway. Fred says that the state has to go by the new stormwater laws so they are under some obligation here. Linda thinks Con Com would have the most clout to get them to fix the problem. So there are many issues to work through here but at least a beginning. If anyone has any special expertise in any part of this area, please join in.

Adding to the problem is the runoff from the drive going to the gym. Why this was allowed without some kind of mitigation, I don't know. Also to the right of Alicante's parking lot, there are two pipes that take storm runoff, brightly iridescent with oil slick, to the lake. These are under Mendon control so we have to see what can be done there.

Shirley