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Select Board approves sewer commission request to solicit bids for water meters to show system capacity
Summary
The Select Board approved the Sewer Commission's request to issue bids for roughly a dozen water meters, primarily for commercial sites, to demonstrate to the Department of Environmental Services that the system can support additional users.
The Tamworth Select Board approved a motion to authorize the Sewer Commission to request bids for water meters intended to demonstrate system capacity to the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (DES).
Paul Friesman, representing the Sewer Commission, said the first batch will be primarily commercial meters — about a dozen — to document actual usage and show the system has capacity to support housing and business development. Friesman told the board the meters can be read remotely and are intended to measure water that enters the sewer (effluent) for DES purposes; irrigation water that does not enter the sewer would not be counted as sewer flow.
Board members discussed how DES assigns allowed gallons per day to properties and raised concern that an assigned allotment can remain with a parcel even if a building is removed. Commissioners asked whether a business’s permitted gallons-per-day could be reduced based on measured usage; board members and sewer commissioners said that allocation is part of DES’s process and that the town expects flexibility while balancing future growth needs.
The board moved and approved the sewer commission’s request to solicit bids. Members said they would coordinate with town administrator Emily to format and distribute the request and to contact the handful of vendors that supply water meters. The board noted Lakes Region Water and Lakes Region Water Works were contacted in prior discussions; those utilities have not committed to installing meters for all customers in the past.
Why it matters: Installing meters and documenting actual usage is a prerequisite for DES to approve additional sewer users, which could enable future residential and commercial growth within current system limits. Board members said the collection will help demonstrate the town is using less than its DES allotment — the board estimated current use at less than one‑third of permitted capacity.
Next steps: Town staff will prepare the bid request, contact known vendors and post the solicitation under the town purchasing policy.
