MRV Looking Beyond SRF Funding

            The Mattapoisett River Valley Water District is trying to work a borrowing scheme after being denied a State Revolving Fund loan for its long-planned upgrade to the filtration system of the water-treatment facility located in Mattapoisett.

            According to Mass.gov, the State Revolving Fund (SRF) loan program offers affordable financing options to cities, towns and public water utilities to improve water supply infrastructure and drinking water safety.

            Without this option, a subcommittee of the MRV, including Chairman and Fairhaven representative Vinnie Furtado and representatives from each of the Tri-Towns (member towns) have been meeting with Unibank for Savings.

            By way of what was described during Tuesday’s regularly scheduled MRV meeting as an Intermunicipal Agreement (IMA) that would be drafted by the MRV’s legal counsel Blair Bailey, the private-lending plan would see Fairhaven borrow all $7,200,000 and recoup all but its own $4,300,000 share.

            As Furtado explained, even though the MRV borrowed and paid back SRF funding, only the Town of Fairhaven has audited statements on the MRV’s behalf.

            “If we’re going to go down the path of private borrowing, that may be what we’re going to have to do,” said Furtado, fully cognizant that Town Meeting is too close to accomplish in time for May.

            Over the past two days, Jon Gregory of Tata & Howard engineers has been in communication with the state Department of Environmental Protection, which he told the members carries $5,000,000 for communities in emergency situations. Earlier Tuesday, a state official contacted Gregory directly to discuss the MRV’s plight.

            “We are going to go ahead and send (DEP) any information that can help them understand the district better,” he said. “This is very much a fluid situation, we just heard about it an hour ago.”

            Facilities Manager Henri Renauld asked, “If we go after the SRF for $5,000,000 … can we apply for the $2,200,000?”

            Bailey clarified the process, noting that select boards approve IMA’s, so only Fairhaven needs a Town Meeting vote. “There were Town Meeting votes in Marion and Mattapoisett to approve the borrowing. … They’re aware of what the costs are.”

            In other business, Renauld reported that total invoices paid by the commission in March totaled $66,081.94.

            Immediately prior to the commission meeting, the MRV Water Protection Advisory Committee met for 30 minutes, hearing from the Buzzards Bay Coalition regarding the MRV’s Water Supply Resilience Land Protection Project.

            The project was launched to acquire and protect 240 acres of land with permanent conservation restrictions, encompassing the groundwater aquifer that supplies drinking water for MRV member towns Fairhaven, Mattapoisett, Marion and Rochester. Acushnet is also a participant in the project.

            In an update to the committee, Buzzards Bay Coalition representative Brendan Annett reported that the state-review process is being completed, and local committees will meet after respective town meetings.

            Coalition representative Allen Decker told the MRV he is working with Bailey on a town-meeting article and that the Coalition created a fact sheet translated into Spanish, Portuguese and Cabo Verde Creole. A site visit was held on March 26, drawing a dozen people from the different member towns.

            In his Tata & Howard Report, Gregory told the membership that David Watling is on the mend after an accident and is having his son help him continue his customary water-monitoring work.

            December graphs have been received from Megan McCarthy; those will be converted to PDF files and be distributed to the group, bringing together an entire year of data that Gregory will analyze and present this spring with an eye on how the area reacted to the extended drought.

            Seeing that the proposed solar canopy over the rear parking lot of Rochester Memorial School creates no new impervious area and does not change the watershed, the committee voted to authorize the chairman to write a letter of approval to Green Seal Environmental to satisfy Rochester Planning Board requirements.

            As reported by Committee Treasurer Jeff Furtado, total February expenditures for the committee totaled in excess of $35,000, while total income as of March 1 was $81,493.61 for a total balance of $156,900.42. March expenditures totaled $38,531.19, bringing total income to $81,687.31 with an April 1 ending balance of $154,007.17.

            The MRV plans to bring back its regional meeting of water officials in the fall.

            The next meeting of the MRV Water Supply Protection Advisory Committee is scheduled for Tuesday, May 9, at 3:30 pm with the MRV Water District Commission meeting to immediately follow at 4:00 pm on the same Zoom call.

MRV Water District Commission/Water Supply Protection Advisory Committee

By Mick Colageo

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