NEW SALEM — The town will receive $73,000 to determine the feasibility of creating a public water system for properties affected by chemicals in the water.
New Salem has been awarded an Emerging Contaminants in Small or Disadvantaged Communities grant from the state Department of Environmental Protection to evaluate potential long-term solutions to contamination involving PFAS, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances used in common consumer products like food packaging and outdoor clothing. The work will include community engagement through resident focus groups and ongoing discussions between the Selectboard and consultants as findings are developed.
“Small towns like New Salem often don’t have the resources to tackle challenges like this alone, which is why programs like this are so critical,” Town Coordinator Emily Hill wrote in an email. “Community input is a key part of this process, and we will be counting on residents to provide it through public hearings and surveys.”
PFAS are a group of harmful manmade chemicals. According to the state, exposure to sufficiently elevated levels of PFAS compounds can cause a variety of health effects, including developmental effects in infants, impacts to certain organ functions and the immune system, and an elevated cancer risk.
Hill said New Salem’s PFAS contamination included Swift River School and at least one residential house. In relation to the school, the contaminants likely come from vehicles in the parking lot that seep into the well on school property. A new filtration system was installed by January 2024, a little more than three years after tests of the tap water revealed elevated levels of the family of “forever chemicals.” However, no state drinking water regulations were ever violated.
The town was awarded $21,000 in reimbursement funds for work that has already been completed, and another $52,000 to support a comprehensive feasibility study. Hill said the town has had to put tens of thousands of dollars into testing and remediation costs over the past two fiscal years and those costs will continue to increase in the future.
“In theory, we could create a public well for the impacted properties,” Hill said, “but there had been a lot of back and forth on if that is worth the cost and ongoing support that would be needed.”
The $73,000 was part of at least $10.3 million in grants the Healey-Driscoll administration awarded to 18 public water suppliers to promote consistent access to clean drinking water. The state Department of Environmental Protection selected these projects to help treat and remove contaminants, such as PFAS and manganese.
Though New Salem was the only town in Franklin County to receive funding, the South Royalston Improvement Corporation in the North Quabbin region received $115,000 to put toward planning, design and construction of a treatment facility for iron and manganese removal.
“Small communities across Massachusetts are finding it harder than ever to tackle the myriad issues stretching local budgets,” MassDEP Commissioner Bonnie Heiple said in a statement. “We’re delighted to partner with our cities and towns through this additional funding to support one of the most critical needs: upgrades to aging and inadequate drinking water infrastructure. These projects will both address longstanding challenges and set up these systems to reliably serve residents for decades to come.”
This grant program is federally funded, as MassDEP collaborates with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to support projects that assist small and disadvantaged communities to address drinking water contaminants, including those identified on the EPA’s Contaminant Candidate Lists.
