'Lining all the pieces up.' Cape Cod base's wastewater plant privatized, open to town uses

On the second floor of the Sandwich Center for Active Living, contractors and vendors interested in helping operate the underused wastewater treatment plant on Joint Base Cape Cod listened.

The plant's new owners were presenting.

“We’re at the finish line, but we’re really just beginning,” said Matthew Kennedy, co-founder of the investment and development firm, Converge Partners.

Despite what has been a saga of events leading up to the Wednesday morning meetings — with several delays and contracts being scrutinized by federal, state and local agencies — Kennedy said he is certain the plant can be used to handle sewage from towns on the Upper Cape.

“There’s probably seven or eight different government organizations involved in this deal,” Kennedy said. “Lining all the pieces up and getting all the approvals takes, I think, longer than the folks in the private sector may wish, but ultimately, the government has been a good partner in working with us in a collaborative way to get this done.”

Changing ownership

The firm officially took full ownership of the plant from the U.S. Air Force on Sept. 29, and Kennedy said the next step will be for Converge to take title on March 1.

Another company, American States Utility Services, commonly referred to as ASUS, will then begin operations March 1 under its local subsidiary, Bay State Utility Services. Kennedy said Converge has leased the wastewater facility to ASUS, which was awarded the contract to run the plant by the U.S. Department of Defense for $45 million in September.

During the interim, ASUS Vice President of Operations Susan Miller said the company will be hiring around 11 people to begin operations. Some of the positions include a utility manager, a superintendent, treatment plant operators, utility technicians and maintenance techs, she said.

“We're just wanting to meet those that are local in the community,” said Emily Stewart, the ASUS director of business development, referring to the day’s meetings. “We like to work with all of the local folks here who bring that level of expertise and knowledge to ASUS as we move in.”

Some towns are interested in using plant, others not

Several towns on the Upper Cape are critically aware of the need to solve the problem of sewage disposal, the pollutants that come with individual septic systems, as well as aging infrastructure. They see the plant as a potential solution.

Sandwich, in particular, has made significant inroads toward using the treatment plant as an option to handle disposal of some wastewater.

“Working with Joint Base Cape Cod, we think, far and away, makes the most sense for us,” Sandwich Town Manager Bud Dunham said. “We're fortunate from others in that we only have about 25-35% of our community that needs to be sewered, but the parts that do abut the base." It would make a lot of sense for the town to try to work cooperatively with ASUS and Converge, Dunham said.

Connecting their municipal lines, Dunham said, is a cheaper and more environmentally sound alternative to individual septic systems, which are a leading contributor to nitrogen pollution that is destroying water quality.

An official at the Mashpee town manager’s office said the Select Board has not directed the town to consider using the base treatment plant and declined further comment.

Mary Jane Mastrangelo, Bourne Select Board chair, said the town is not considering using the plant at present.

“We have not identified that as an option in the comprehensive wastewater management plan,” Mastrangelo said. “We have been in discussions, some early discussions about utilizing it, but right now it’s not in our plan.”

A spokesman for the town of Falmouth could not be reached for comment.

Base: What is the background?

The base, in the western part of Cape Cod, hosts five military commands, including the Massachusetts Army National Guard at Camp Edwards, and the Massachusetts Air National Guard, which maintains and operates the wastewater plant at Otis Air Base.

The base lies in Mashpee, Bourne and Sandwich and abuts the town of Falmouth.

Joint Base Cape Cod was designated a Superfund site in 1989 under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act. A Superfund site is a site contaminated with hazardous waste that poses a threat to human health and the environment.

The Massachusetts National Guard has taken several measures to clean up pollution at Joint Base Cape Cod, investing $1.2 billion to clean up contaminated groundwater and soil.

The treatment plant has a “significant” amount of contamination from PFAS, known as "forever chemicals," U.S. Environmental Protection Agency spokesperson JoAnne Kittrell said in an email. It is the Air Force’s responsibility to deal with the contamination, she said.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, are “widely used, long-lasting chemicals, components of which break down very slowly over time,” according to the EPA. The EPA, generally, proposed regulating PFAS by establishing nationwide legally enforceable levels for drinking water, but no regulations have been finalized.

Officials from Joint Base Cape Cod could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Chris Connor, ASUS senior vice president, said the road to start operating the plant has been challenging, but ultimately the company will fill a gap in providing sewage treatment for the Upper Cape communities adjacent to the base.

“So we’re talking about some of the complications and challenges we've had over the last two or three years, which we've had many, but we've cut those paths and now it kind of opens the door for the rest of the story,” Connor said.

Walker Armstrong reports on all things Cape and Islands, primarily focusing on courts, transportation and the Joint Base Cape Cod military base. Contact him at WArmstrong@capecodonline.com. Follow him on Twitter: @jd__walker.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Hiring planned at newly privatized sewer plant on Cape Cod base.