The town-organized forum on the Chatham clean water plan was as expected, a one-sided presentation of what town officials and their sewer consultant Stearns & Wheler came up as the one and only way to solve the problem of excess nitrogen in our coastal waters.

Since the offer by CCT to provide a spokesman for alternative ways to save tens of millions of dollars was rejected, there was no voice to counter the incorrect and to a large extent irrelevant information suppolied by the town's spokesmen.

Though "hosted" by Friends of Chatham Waterways the program and all speakers were selected by town employee Robert Duncanson who is in charge of the excess nitrogen project under Town Manager William Hinchey.

CCT had offered to produce an EPA expert or someone else knowledgeable of the cost and environmental benefits of alternative systems for the program, but FCW had rejected the offer. There was no effort to present a balanced view

The words "cost effective" and "cost savings" were never used by any speakers on the Duncanson panel.

There are well over 1,000 alternative systems operating in Canada and elsewhere in the United States that can do as good a job as a big centralized sewer system but at far less cost.

Lombardo Associates of Newton is one such provider which is talking with taxpayers and public officials in Orleans, Mashpee and Falmouth because of their concerns for the huge costs quoted by Stearns & Wheler and other Big Sewer providers.

Right now, for example, Mashpee has before it two engineering estimates to solve the problem of excess nitrogen in its coastal waters. Stearns & Wheeler has an engineering estimate for a big city centralized sewer system for $550 million. The Lombardo engineering estimate is for $250 million.

Decentralized systems don't tear up every street in town, waste miles and miles of piping, don't invade and deplete the water table, don't wind up pumping wastewater and fresh water into the ocean, but do as good a quality job on the excess nitrogen problem with possible savings, as in Mashpee, of $250 million, some 55% less in cost than the Stearns & Wheler centralized sewer estimate. The Mashpee view: "I'd be a fool not to look at a possible cost savings of $300 million."

Is Chatham being foolish for not considering possible savings of that magnitude? 55% would be $187 million in possible savings. Even if it were "only" $60 million, would it be worth lookiing into?

A bonus for the decentralized system: It can be done in about half the time, it can show positive results in water quality improvement much earlier. Because of the patented Nitrex invention incorporated in the Lombardo proprietary water edge groundwater barrier, nitrogen already in the groundwater moving towards salt water at the rate of about one foot a day can be intercepted and kept from contaminating Chatham’s waters. You don’t have to wait 20 years to see what your tax dollars are paying for.

So where are Chatham taxpayers today?

On September 22nd, CCT requested that the selectmen, in discharging their fiduciary duty to taxpayers, initiate a process, involving independent citizens, to evaluate how such alternatives could be integrated with our existing wastewater system and how many millions could be saved. (See the immediate prior blog entry to this one.)

We have heard that the selectmen will be taking up CCT's request at its meeting today, Tuesday, October 20th, which begins at 4. The meeting is broadcast live on Channel 18. The agenda item is far down on the list and the main presentation is being made by town official Robert Duncanson.

We've heard that, after so many years of hearing about the excess nitrogen issue, town officials, including the selectmen, are tired of the subject. On an issue of this importance, we don’t believe it.

Most taxpayers haven't even heard about the staggering costs they are close to being committed to. They haven't been told by town officials there are ways to save many millions of property tax dollars and still get the clean waters everyone wants. Since it’s their money, they’re not tired of the subject at all. They are eager to hear about how they can save money of that magnitude.

In any event, before any huge expenditure for cleaning the waters goes forward, they want to be able to vote on the issue at a Town Meeting.

Right now, the cost to taxpayers is the hands of the selectmen.

We hope they make the right decision for the taxpayer and will investigate these cost savings alternatives.