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Sharon resident Lisa Crump urges town action after years of septic odors, repeated alarms at Maplefields
Summary
Resident Lisa Crump told the Selectboard the putrid smells and recurring septic alarms at Maplefields have persisted for three to four years and called for Town and State assistance to identify the source and protect water and public health.
Lisa Crump, a Sharon resident who lives adjacent to the Maplefields property, told the Selectboard on Feb. 2 that persistent septic odors and frequent alarm events have lasted “about three or four years,” and that the smells are severe enough that she often cannot open her windows in summer.
Crump asked the Town and State to help determine the source so there is no public-health risk to the water supply in her building. “I often cannot open my window in the summer due to the intensity of the odors,” she said during the Selectboard’s reports segment. Scott Henkels, the board chair, told residents he is serving as Deputy Health Officer and invited complaints to be raised with him.
Town Administrator Nicola Shipman said she has contacted the Town Health Officer and the Deputy Health Officer to determine whether local public-health capacity exists to respond to the Maplefields situation. Alexandre Bird, who said he previously served as Town Health Officer, told the board he recalled problems with the site’s leach field and “suspected the alarm likely has something to do with the leach field.”
The Selectboard did not record a formal remedy at the meeting but members and staff said they would follow up with health officials and relevant agencies. The board’s next steps will include confirming who will lead any on-site investigation and whether state-level assistance is needed.
