The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority on Thursday dropped its proposal to withdraw an additional 20 million gallons a day from the Quabbin Reservoir in response to loud opposition from communities surrounding the watershed.
Opposition boiled over in September, when more than 130 people packed Belchertown Town Hall to speak against the request. Commenters said the MWRA had not justified the size of the withdrawal or disclose the destination. The outcry continued throughout the monthlong public comment period, culminating in more than 1,000 submissions from residents, municipal officials and legislators.
These concerns ultimately led the agency to rescind its request, MWRA interim Executive Director Stephen Estes-Smargiassi wrote in a Thursday letter to the Water Resources Commission. The MWRA is a state organization that oversees the use of Quabbin and Wachusett Reservoir water, while the commission oversees statewide water policy and reviews transfers of water between river basins through the Interbasin Transfer Act.
Estes-Smargiassi noted that the MWRA’s application had stirred up “concern and confusion.” He said that any future interbasin transfer requests will follow traditional procedure by receiving input and analysis from donating and receiving communities.
“As stewards of an essential regional water resource, we recognize the importance of maintaining the confidence and trust of the Quabbin communities that have protected and supported the Quabbin watershed for generations,” Estes-Smargiassi wrote.
Pioneer Valley residents and lawmakers celebrated the decision as a victory for western Massachusetts. The letter also opens up conversation to establish an equitable relationship between the MWRA and the Quabbin communities.
“I feel relieved and heartened,” said state Sen. Jo Comerford, D-Northampton. “It’s really a deep acknowledgment of the process that what MWRA was pursuing was not equal and needed a reset. … This gives us an opportunity to go back to these longstanding discussions from a place of mutual respect.”
The MWRA withdraws an average of 200 million gallons a day from the reservoir to supply drinking water and sewer to 3.1 million people and more than 5,500 businesses in 61 communities in eastern and central Massachusetts.
There are some communities already in the process of joining the authority, Estes-Smargiassi wrote. The agency will work with these communities to preserve any completed application materials and move forward “in a manner that recognizes the interests of all stakeholders involved.”
State Rep. Aaron Saunders, D-Belchertown, said he was pleasantly surprised by the letter. While he knew the merits around the proposal’s objections were solid, he was encouraged by the MWRA’s acknowledgement of the Quabbin towns’ stewardship of the watershed.
“I take MWRA at their word that they do value that relationship and are interested in finding a place where we all move forward together,” Saunders said.
In a statement on Facebook, state Sen. Jake Oliveira, D-Ludlow, called this a win for community advocacy. He congratulated the people whose comments and attendance at the public hearing ultimately pushed the MWRA to back down.
“No one person or organization can claim this accomplishment,” Oliveira wrote. “It belongs to all of you.”
This is the second project that the authority has dropped this week. On Monday night, the agency backed off a plan to install a 10-million-gallon tank below Magazine Beach Park in Cambridge. According to the Cambridge Day, the project drew community controversy for fencing off 2.3 acres of the public park.
Both developments coincide with the MWRA getting a new executive director in Jonathon Gulliver. Gulliver, who previously held the position of highway administrator at the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, is familiar with western Massachusetts, Saunders said. Comerford added that she knows Gulliver as a “fair dealer and an honorable man.”
Communities around the Quabbin and their legislative advocates have been pushing for greater western Massachusetts representation for years. Saunders and Comerford have advocated for Quabbin-related seats on the MWRA Advisory Board and greater financial reimbursement for the municipalities caring for the reservoir. Recently, the legislators also called for officials to reexamine the withdrawal limit of 350 million gallons a day using current climate science.
The letter signals to Saunders an opportunity to revisit these requests.
“It’s recognition that even though it might cost the ratepayers a couple cents more a month, it’s money well spent,” Saunders said. “It’s an obligation that MWRA has to our communities, no different than the MWRA has to pay their employees and materials and upkeep for the system.”
Comerford said this could be the beginning of a larger movement of collective power for western Massachusetts. She hopes to take the organizing model from this issue and apply it to education funding in the Pioneer Valley.
“This is a reminder to everyone in Massachusetts that when we fight together, we win,” she said. “When we fight together, Boston hears us. We can never forget the lesson of this campaign, and now we need to wage it in every other area.”
