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Board of Health addresses noise complaints, wastewater trends and shared‑service grant work
Summary
The board reviewed a complaint about loud radio‑controlled airplanes at town fields and, after staff demonstration and DEP input, leaned against declaring a public-health nuisance while offering to measure levels; staff also reported steady local COVID trends and shared-service grant work for a regional strategic plan.
The Uxbridge Board of Health discussed several administrative and public‑health items including a nuisance complaint about radio‑controlled airplanes, wastewater substance monitoring, and the Blackstone Valley shared‑services grant.
Staff and a DPW volunteer demonstrated the sound of the model airplanes and noted flights are intermittent, mostly on weekends. DEP advised that background noise and recreational activities (soccer fields, mowing) can dominate sound measurements; the board decided it was unlikely to declare a public‑health nuisance but agreed staff could make limited noise-level measurements with a borrowed meter to document complaints if they continue.
On public-health surveillance, staff said local COVID indicators and wastewater trends are steady and follow recent national decreases; an epidemiologist’s wastewater report flagged unexpectedly high nicotine indicators and elevated fentanyl/methamphetamine signals in nearby Douglas, which staff described as hard to interpret but worth continued monitoring.
The board also received an update on a shared‑service grant: the Blackstone Valley collaborative hired a consultant (BME) to develop a state-required strategic plan covering eight towns; the work will be funded through the grant and administered via Northbridge as the lead.
Other routine business included inspection highlights, training updates, grant-funded projects such as a dam-removal effort, and approval of meeting minutes. The board adjourned after routine motions.
