Select Board clears Albertini well PFAS upgrades to move forward

The Mansfield Select Board voted Wednesday to approve the municipal clearinghouse submission for upgrades to the Albertini treatment plant, a project that will add PFAS treatment to the town's final water-treatment site and is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2026.

Town project manager Michael Herron told the Select Board the plan covers construction of a new roughly 3,500‑square‑foot PFAS treatment building at the Albertini site (1675 West Street), replacement of Well No. 4, electrical and generator upgrades, green sand replacement, well and pump improvements and chemical-system upgrades. Work at the town’s satellite well at 311 Plain Street includes demolition of an old outbuilding, well and pump upgrades, and new underground utilities for power and fiber optics to support the town SCADA network.

Herron said the project has received conservation and site-plan approvals and a positive recommendation from the planning board. He also told the board the project was budgeted and approved at town meeting, and that the overall water-program schedule anticipates the Albertini site coming online in late 2026. The work is the final step in the town’s multi‑plant PFAS program; town staff said installation of fiber to all well sites is a collateral benefit.

After discussion the board voted to approve the Albertini well PFAS program as presented. Board members noted the town’s multi‑year effort to address PFAS and described Mansfield as “ahead of the curve” compared with many neighboring communities for installing PFAS treatment on municipal wells.

Project proponents said the work will be phased to avoid summer peak-season outages and that the Dustin Prescott treatment plant (already under construction) will be integrated into the overall plan. The board’s positive vote clears the municipal-review step; contract awards and construction schedules will be set in later public meetings.