Will Our Faucets Run Out in the Next Ten Years?
At the March 6, 2023 City Council, the 2023 Water Master Plan was dropped from the City’s Capital Improvement Plan (CIP). That means this new ten-year plan to cover from 2023 to 2033 doesn’t get the attention it needs this year.
We are left relying on outdated and inadequate measures approved in 2013. Councilor Kate Cook made the motion to delete the inclusion of a new, 2023 Plan from the CIP. The entire Council voted unanimously to pass the motion.
As a further insult to the Planning Board, City Manager Karen Conard couldn’t remember if the Planning Board recommendation was made by an individual or the Board. Too bad because she attended that Planning Board meeting on December 15, 2022 when the Board voted unanimously to approve entering the 2023 Water Master Plan into the upcoming CIP.
Message to the City Manager: this was a Planning Board recommendation.
Critical Issues: It’s About Water Quality ….
This is a big deal, made even more critical by new US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) water standards passed eight days later on March 14, 2023 These established tighter limits on concentrations of PFAS and other per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in public drinking water.
Suddenly, several of the City’s wells no longer meet EPA standards for PFAS and PFAS-related chemicals. What will the City do to meet this challenge?
There are other critical issues of water quality for Portsmouth’s public water supply. These include the existence of the old Dover landfill in the City’s Bellamy Reservoir watershed and the critical need to protect the Reservoir from surface water and groundwater contamination.
What’s the City’s response going forward? Are there further, proactive measures that should be taken to better protect Portsmouth’s largest water supply?
Further, there are concerns related to projected water demand and whether the City will be able to meet future supply requirements. For example, Lonza is currently permitted for 350,000 gallons per day and it has received approval for a one million square foot expansion, doubling its footprint at Pease.
Does this mean its water use will also double? It currently uses 60% of the water available at Pease.
The Pease Development Authority’s Golf Course uses about 41,000 gallons a day for irrigation purposes for free. Are there plans in place for water conservation, use of tertiary treated water or pricing to better control this demand?
Water Master Plan is Strategic, Not Tactical
At the December 15, 2022 Planning Board meeting, the Water Department said it had spent $44 million over the previous 10 years since the last Water Master Plan in 2013. These monies were used to address issues raised in the 2013 Water Master Plan as well as other, ad hoc projects. Key to this is the value of setting priorities for work to be done.
This Is Where the 2023 Water Master Plan Is So Important
It is strategic in nature. It flags major issues such as the quality and quantity issues described earlier in this article. Yes, the “build and measure” approach of the Water Department is crucial in carrying out tactical responses to address immediate needs for improvement.
But longer-term responses to identified drivers of needs such as population growth, development and industry demands all require further deliberation, resource allocation and thoughtful planning.
What Was the City Council Thinking?
Kate Cook’s motion had the hallmarks of coming from City management. One can only guess that City management must have also coached Councilor Cook’s colleagues to all vote in the same way to drop the inclusion of the 2023 Water Master Plan from the CIP.
What priority does City management place on ensuring safe and adequate clean drinking water for Portsmouth’s citizens? How important is it for City council to provide residents and businesses with the long-range security of knowing that decadal planning is taking place by the City?
Unlike City Management and City Council…
At least the City Planning Board understands the importance of an adequate supply of clean drinking water. It is the Planning Board’s top priority.
Management by Can-Kicking
Is our government supposed to protect us from foreseeable threats? Or is it only good at procrastination and avoidance of difficult issues. Is it unable to think strategically? We taxpayers pay City management and the City Council to make the difficult decisions. Maybe it’s time for them to earn their keep.
Put the 2023 Water Master Plan back on the CIP! Make sure it receives the necessary visibility so it gets done!!
