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Select Board presses Poland Spring over monitoring as groundwater readings fluctuate
Summary
After mixed groundwater readings, the Denmark Select Board and residents pushed for greater town oversight of Poland Spring's permit process and clearer reporting when the company assists private wells; staff said pre-application meetings and geologist review will shape the next permit cycle.
Denmark — Town staff told the Select Board that recent groundwater monitoring near Long Pond produced mixed results and that the town will use the permit-application process to scrutinize Poland Spring’s pumping and any local impacts.
Betty, a town staff member, said data collected through weekly monitoring showed one well (MW3) briefly fell just below the alert level while another (MW320) returned a reading just above the alert. "Because they didn't fall below the alert level twice then it did not trigger a mitigation plan," Betty said, describing the operational trigger the town and geologist use to determine when a mitigation plan is required.
Why it matters: residents and the board said the town needs clear visibility into any private-well assistance provided by Poland Spring and into the company’s monitoring data, because reports of dry or degraded private wells have surfaced in the Long Pond area. A resident who identified herself as Lori said she has photos showing the pond at notably low levels and said a neighbor’s well required outside work during winter months; she added that Poland Spring helped cover some repair costs. "My understanding is that they ended up only covering half of it," Lori said.
Staff said Poland Spring must submit a formal permit application 180 days before the permit expires; board members and staff identified June 25 as the practical earlier milestone for pre-application activity and said the formal application and review will occur publicly. The town has opened an "alert level threshold correspondence" folder on the website (under the Palmer hydrologic drought index and water-extraction documents) to collect letters, weekly data and related emails.
Board direction and next steps: staff said a pre-application meeting has been scheduled that will include a select-board representative (the board noted Andy was selected for that role), town geologist participation and representatives from Poland Spring. "Once they start the application process then we're going to be looking at ... what do we need in the future," Betty said, adding the town geologist has already requested raw data from Poland Spring's recent annual report.
Residents pressed the board to ask Poland Spring for records showing how many private wells the company has assisted. Phil Marshall asked for clarity on the town's accounting of Poland Spring funds and reimbursements; staff explained the town maintains two Poland Spring/Nestle-related accounts that fund monitoring, geologist invoices and in-house time, and that the company receives quarterly in-house invoices for expenses tied to permit monitoring.
The board and staff said the pre-application and application review — with geologist input, public meetings and select-board representation — will be the principal venue to examine monitoring locations, potential additional monitoring wells, and how the town wants to record and respond to private-well complaints during the next permit period.
