Harwich Water & Wastewater Department

Sewer Use Regulations

Article XII.  Land Use Controls – Wastewater Flow Management

Preamble

The Town of Harwich Board of Selectmen being responsible for the design and construction of the town sewer systems and for the implementation of the Comprehensive Wastewater Management Plan (CWMP) adopt the following Land Use Control – Wastewater Flow Management regulation to achieve Flow Neutral requirements. Sewer Service Areas (SSAs) to be implemented over eight phases during a 40-year period and wastewater flow projections for those areas have been defined after completing a comprehensive and deliberate study of the existing and projected wastewater needs of the Town. Reference is hereby made to the Final CWMP accepted by the Secretary of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEEA) in 2016. The intent of this regulation is to manage the wastewater flows in Town to those projected in the approved CWMP, and sewage treatment provided through intermunicipal agreements and/or in the case of construction of a wastewater treatment facility, the issuance of flow limits issued through a MassDEP Groundwater Discharge permit.

Background

Any owner of a house, building, or other structure used for human habitation, occupancy, employment, or recreation shall install sanitary facilities thereon in order to connect at his or her own expense to a public sanitary sewer of the Town based on the following sections.  All Connection and Extension Permits for sanitary sewers shall be issued at the sole discretion of the Harwich Board of Selectmen. Implementation of the Comprehensive Wastewater Management Plan and construction of the sewer systems are the responsibility of the Board of Selectmen.  The Town of Harwich completed a CWMP in 2016 prepared by CDM Smith Inc., to provide a comprehensive wastewater management plan that outlines the existing and future wastewater needs of the Town in order to protect and restore water quality.
To analyze existing wastewater flows and estimate future wastewater needs, the Town was divided into eight Sewer Service Areas primarily by watershed. The Campground Area, Great Sand Lakes area, and the Route 28 Harwich Port area are outside of the Massachusetts Estuaries Project (MEP) watershed areas and thus are grouped separately. Figure 13-4 from the CWMP shows the watersheds and SSAs. Existing and future wastewater flows were also calculated for each of the five watersheds. The approved March, 2016 CWMP, used water use data from 2004 through 2007 to estimate existing and future wastewater needs, identifying a future need of 1,259,000 gallons per day (gpd).  The sewer service area flows for each of the eight (8) watershed areas are summarized in attached Table 1-1.
The Harwich Board of Selectmen will use information and recommendations included in the CWMP as a guide when considering applications for new connection and extension permits and thereby manage the capacity within the sewer system to serve the needs of the Town for the 40-year planning period.

Regulation:  Land Use Control – Wastewater Flow Management

The Harwich Board of Selectmen are adopting this new Sewer Use Regulation article that will ensure managed smart growth and prevent excessive growth based on availability of municipal sewer service.

General Land Use Controls

The Sewer Use Regulation as adopted by the Board of Selectmen delineates and designates eight SSAs and the wastewater flow to be allocated to those individual areas. The areas are shown on Figure 1-1 and the flows are shown on Table 1-1, are both attached and made a part of this sewer use regulation Article XII. Those flows shall be utilized as a guide by the Town in allocating flows for new connections within the individual SSA during the noted 40-year planning period (2017-2057). Flows are based on actual flows.

Wastewater Flow Management

The Board of Selectmen reserve the right to reallocate flows within all SSAs provided that the following provisions are met:

1. An applicant seeking to alter a SSA or flow within a SSA shall be responsible for all costs associated with that change including potential for filing a Notice of Project Change with the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act (MEPA) Office as well as burden of proof to demonstrate the public health need or water quality need, and public benefit;

2. A re-allocation of flows within the SSA shall not exceed the total project flow increase for Harwich in the projected 40-year planning period as presented in the March, 2016 CWMP and shown in Table 1-1;

3. A re-allocation of flow from one SSA to another SSA without exceeding the total flow increase shall be subject to a simple majority vote of the Board of Selectmen; and

4. A re-allocation of flows to an area outside an existing SSA shall only be allowed under the following circumstances:

a.  For non-public health emergencies or water quality benefits, by unanimous vote of the Board of Selectmen and by positive vote of a legally convened town meeting if zoning changes or Town funding is required. This provision is possible provided the total flow for the projected 40-year planning period is not exceeded.

b.  For public health emergencies, by unanimous vote of the Board of Selectmen and by recommendation of the Harwich Board of Health. This provision is possible provided the total flow for the projected 40-year planning period is not exceeded.

Abandonment of Systems 

Existing on-site septic systems that are connected to the Town’s sewer system shall comply with Commonwealth of Massachusetts – Department of Environmental Protection Regulations 310 CMR 15.354 – Abandonment of Systems and any local Harwich Board of Health regulations.

Adopted

The Board of Selectmen for the Town of Harwich, MA, do hereby adopt the following Land Use Control – Wastewater Flow Management regulation. The sewer service areas and projected wastewater flows have been designated following comprehensive and deliberate study of the existing and projected wastewater needs of the Town. Reference is hereby made to the Final Comprehensive Wastewater Management Plan (CWMP) accepted by the MEPA Office in 2016.

1. Town has an executed Inter-municipal Agreement with the Town of Harwich for 300,000 gallons to service the Pleasant Bay Sewer Service Area.

2. Phased approvals for wastewater flow to the listed SSAs will be approved by the town Wastewater Commissioners as inter-municipal agreements and construction of a wastewater treatment facility with an issued MassDEP Groundwater Discharge Permit that outline maximum available sewer flows.