Wayne board weighs DEP-funded filtration for landfill abutters, residents seek maintenance guarantees

Select Board members discussed concerns raised by abutting homeowners who say private wells or plumbing may be impacted by contamination the state suspects came from the municipal landfill.

The board reviewed a Department of Environmental Protection template remediation agreement but heard that residents want the town or the state to provide longer-term assurance and accountability for filtration systems. "They want the town maintaining" the system while DEP typically reimburses the town for initial costs, a board member said. The group described the estimated cost range for installing in-home filtration systems as roughly $3,500 to $4,000 per household and noted that DEP typically reimburses about 90% of that initial expense; ongoing annual maintenance (estimated in discussion as perhaps $2,000 a year for some installations) is often not reimbursable.

Board members debated whether to proceed with installation immediately or wait until the town and residents finalize an indemnity/maintenance agreement. One member argued for immediate installation to stop supplying bottled water to affected households; others preferred finalizing an agreement that spells out maintenance responsibilities and liability if a system fails. The board directed staff to select a preferred remediation-agreement template, circulate it to residents for comment, and return with a recommended draft.

What’s next: Staff will circulate the committee’s recommended DEP-template agreement and a preferred draft to the residents for comment and bring a single preferred agreement to the board for follow-up action.