To The Editor:
Thank you to the Waitsfield Community Wastewater Project team for hosting an excellent public meeting last Wednesday, May 8. The team made a clear and compelling case for the need for a centralized wastewater system to serve Waitsfield Village and Irasville. They described the proposed system in detail, including the estimated cost of the project and the grants and loans available to finance the project with no impact on our municipal tax rate. For anyone who missed it, I encourage you to check out the meeting materials along with the recording of the team’s presentation and public Q&A on the town’s website (https://www.waitsfieldvt.gov/departments/projects/wastewater).
I want to emphasize a few key points that were brought up at the meeting, and express my strong support of the project. First, over 40 aging private septic systems located in the flood plain and/or close to a drinking water well are at high risk of failure and pose a significant threat to water quality in the Mad River and public health. Every one of these private systems that can be removed (by connecting to a new community wastewater system) will be an important win for the river and our community.
Second, the town has a unique window of opportunity right now to capitalize on federal and state grant funding. The project team has done yeoman’s work identifying grants that could fund over 85% of the project cost (with the remainder financed through a bond that will be paid fully over time by the users who hook up to the system).
But these grants are only available if we act now, and most are contingent upon our community showing support for the project through a bond vote on June 11. Please join me in supporting this important project by voting “yes” for the Waitsfield Community Wastewater Project on June 11.
Phil Huffman
Waitsfield
