Category: Uncategorized

NHDES and representatives for Saint-Gobain held public meetings on May 9, in Merrimack, and May 22, in Bedford to discuss the waterline extension projects. Below are copies of the presentations and meeting materials discussed at the meetings.

Merrimack, May 9 Public Information Meeting:

Merrimack Contacts

Merrimack Waterline FAQs final

NHDES Well Decommissioning Letter May 9, 2018

Merrimack Well Election Form

Private well connection – MVD info letter 5-8-18

Bedford, May 22 Public Information Meeting:

Overall Map of the 4 Project Areas: BedfordConnectionStatus_20180521_Poster

Presentation: Bedford Public Water System Expansion Presentation – Meeting on May 22 2018- final

Bedford Back River Road Project Area:

Bedford Back River Road Contacts

Bedford Back River Road Waterline FAQs

Bedford Back River Road Well Decommissioning Handout

NHDES May 18, 2018 Well Decommissioning Letter

Bedford Well Election Form

Bedford South River Road Project Area:

South River Road Contacts

South River Road Waterline FAQs

South River Road Well Decommissioning Handout

NHDES May 18, 2018 Well Decommissioning Letter

Bedford Well Election Form

Bedford Point of Entry Treatment (POET) Systems:

POET Contacts

Merrimack Back River Road Project Area:

Merrimack Back River Road Contacts

Merrimack Back River Road Well Decommissioning Handout

NHDES May 18, 2018 Well Decommissioning Letter

Merrimack Well Election Form

 

 

 

 

Textiles Coated International (TCI) provided NHDES with a Work Plan for decommissioning water supply wells at properties that are connected to the public water system.  A copy of the work plan and NHDES’ approval letter can be found on the NHDES OneStop site:

• Click on OneStop site (https://www.des.nh.gov/onestop/index.htm)
• Click on 2nd bullet (One Stop Data)
• In the first fill-in field: Any DES Interest Id – enter the site number: 201605022
• Click “Enter”
• Click on the “Hazardous waste project” link
• Click on the filing cabinet symbol (Site Documents)
• Look for the well decommissioning plan and click “show”

The Work Plan and approval letter outline a schedule for decommissioning, starting in May 2018 and ending over the summer 2018.  A summary report is due to NHDES by September 1, 2018.

NHDES understands that in the past few weeks, TCI initiated well decommissioning at some properties in accordance with the approved work plan.  TCI has informed NHDES that they have postponed the remaining decommissioning work while TCI considers the potential for additional water quality testing at some of these locations before the wells are abandoned.  At this time, NHDES understands that this is a temporary delay in the schedule.  Please note that NHDES did not request that TCI stop the decommissioning work.  TCI indicated that they will provide NHDES with a schedule update during the week of May 28, 2018.

News from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: April 23, 2018

CONTACT: Jim Martin, (603) 271-3710

 

Public Information Meetings

Updates on Bedford and Merrimack Waterline Extension Projects

Impacted Property Owners Encouraged to Attend

Concord, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES) announced today that public meetings have been scheduled in Bedford and Merrimack to provide updates on the waterline extension projects in those towns.

Affected Merrimack property owners will be contacted and invited to the meeting by Horizons Engineering. Affected properties are listed in Exhibit D of the consent decree (https://www4.des.state.nh.us/nh-pfas-investigation/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/final-cd-20180320.pdf) and are shown on the map at (https://www4.des.state.nh.us/nh-pfas-investigation/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Merrimack_PosterSize_20180321.pdf) . It is important that property owners attend the meeting to meet with Horizons Engineering Corporation to complete necessary paperwork. If affected property owners are unable to attend the meeting, they can call Horizons at (802) 457-3151 to schedule a time for a property visit – a necessary step in designing the waterline connections to each property. The meeting Information is below:

Merrimack Public Meeting:
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
6:30 pm
Merrimack High School Cafeteria
38 McElwain Street, Merrimack, NH 03054

Affected Bedford property owners will be contacted and invited to the meeting by either Pennichuck Corporation or CT Male (Saint-Gobain’s engineering firm). Affected properties are listed in Exhibit D of the consent decree (https://www4.des.state.nh.us/nh-pfas-investigation/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/final-cd-20180320.pdf) and are shown on the map at (https://www4.des.state.nh.us/nh-pfas-investigation/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Bedford_PosterSize_20180321.pdf). It is important that property owners attend the meeting to complete necessary paperwork. The meeting Information is below:

Bedford Public Meeting:
Tuesday, May 22, 2018
6:30 pm
Peter Woodbury Elementary School
180 County Road, Bedford, NH 03110

For more information, please contact James Martin, NHDES Public Information Officer, at (603) 271-3710. Additional information on NHDES’ ongoing investigation into perfluorinated chemicals in New Hampshire drinking water, please visit https://www4.des.state.nh.us/nh-pfas-investigation/

 

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The final consent decree between NHDES and Saint-Gobain can be found here: final-cd-20180320 

Information presented on the consent decree at a public meeting held in Litchfield, NH on March 21, 2018:

Southern NH PFOA Investigation Public Meeting, Litchfield, NH March 21, 2018

Merrimack Waterline Connections Map

Litchfield Waterline Connections Map

Bedford Waterline Connections Map

Exhibit C – Preliminary GMZ and Outer Boundary

News from the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: March 20, 2018

CONTACT: Jim Martin, 603 271-3710

des.nh.gov

twitter.com/NHDES

New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services and Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics Reach Agreement on Consent Decree

Concord, NH – The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services (NHDES), represented by the Office of the Attorney General, and Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics (SGPPL) announced today they have reached an agreement to permanently provide safe drinking water to 302 properties in portions of the towns of Bedford, Litchfield, and Merrimack, New Hampshire in addition to the over 450 properties already being addressed.

“We are extremely pleased that NHDES and Saint-Gobain were able to reach agreement on connecting all of the disputed properties to an alternate water source,” said Robert R. Scott, NHDES Commissioner. “I understand the frustration felt by the residents of Bedford, Litchfield and Merrimack with the amount of time it has taken to come to this point, but we believe that it was vital to negotiate a comprehensive agreement. The positive outcome of these negotiations will serve the residents of this area well over the long-term.”

NHDES and SGPPL have been working cooperatively and without a formal agreement for more than two years in response to the presence of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in groundwater in the area. During this time, more than 1,500 samples have been collected from groundwater, surface water, and water supply wells in the impacted towns. In addition, SGPPL voluntarily provided bottled water to residents living in the towns, provided point-of-use treatment systems for more than 50 properties, and connected more than 450 properties to municipal water lines.

“Since first learning about the presence of PFOA in Merrimack, Saint-Gobain and NHDES have focused on finding solutions as quickly as possible. This collaboration has enabled us to accomplish a lot of work in a relatively short amount of time given the size and complexity of this issue,” said Tom Kinisky, CEO of Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics. “We’ve been a part of this community for many years and our top priority was always to take a leadership position in our response. With this Consent Decree now signed, we remain committed to working with community partners to finalize the work left to be done.”

In addition to the work that SGPPL and NHDES have already completed, the Consent Decree will provide for:

• Municipal water line connections to 121 properties in Bedford and point-of-entry treatment (POET) systems for four additional properties in Bedford where it is not feasible to extend municipal water lines.
• Municipal water line connections to 41 additional properties in Merrimack.
• Municipal water line extensions to 27 additional properties in Litchfield.
• Curb stops installed to 109 currently underdeveloped properties in Bedford, Litchfield, Manchester, and Merrimack so that municipal water may be provided to such properties in the future if those properties are developed.
• Site investigation activities including, but not limited to, groundwater, drinking water, surface water, soil and air testing.
• Source remediation if necessary.

Every effort will be made to connect properties with an existing waterline extension design before the end of 2018, weather, contracting availability and other similar factors permitting. Water line extensions to properties where design plans need to be completed will be done as soon as possible, but no later than November of 2019.

Pursuant to the Consent Decree, the State did not waive any private right of action by any individuals or parties.

A meeting will be held for all affected communities (Bedford, Litchfield and Merrimack) at Campbell High School at 1 Highlander Court, Litchfield, NH 03052, on Wednesday, March 21, at 6:30 pm to discuss the specifics of the agreement and the steps that will follow.

For Live video coverage of the meeting click on the following link:   http://trms.bedfordtv.com/CablecastPublicSite/watch/3?channel=1

or follow the instructions below.

Streaming Live Access Through the BCTV Webpage:

Go to the BCTV webpage: www.bedfordtv.com

On the home page under the Channel 16 icon click on “Watch Live”

For those cannot attend the meeting office hours with NHDES personnel to discuss the settlement will be held at the following times and locations:

Thursday 22 March:

8:00 am – 10:00 am                Bedford Town Office Building, 24 Amherst Road

10:30 am – 2:30 pm               Merrimack Town Hall, 6 Baboosic Lake Road

3:00 pm – 5:00 pm                 Bedford Town Office Building

These times are not for fixed presentations. Affected citizens are welcome to attend whatever times they can make and their questions will be answered in order.  Additional meetings will be scheduled as needed.

For additional information on this agreement, please contact:

 For New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services:

Jim Martin

603-271-3710

James.martin@des.nh.gov

www.des.nh.gov

For Saint-Gobain Performance Plastics:

Dina Silver Pokedoff

610-893-5518

dina.pokedoff@saint-gobain.com

www.saint-gobain-northamerica.com

 

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Work continues on the waterline design. Pennichuck conducted ledge probes and test pits the week of October 30 to November 3.  Also, Pennichuck is  scheduled to wrap up surveying the week of November 12. This puts Pennichuck on track to finalize the design documents by mid-December, with the expectation that the project will be in position to go out to bid this winter.

Water Main Construction
Water main construction began on Monday, October 30^th.  The crew expects to complete more than approximately 1,400 linear feet of water main installation on Eastern Avenue through the end of today, Friday, November 3^rd.  The crew will work on Saturday, November 4^th as well, and plans to complete the main installation on Eastern Avenue by the end of the next week, followed by pressure testing and disinfection.  The water main installation will then progress on Skyline Drive.  A second crew will begin main installation on Douglas and Hickory Drives on Monday, November 6^th.    

 Water Service Connections
Depending on location, the service connection contractors will begin on November 6^th and November 27^th, respectively.    If you are an eligible property owner and have not yet returned your contract paperwork to Pennichuck Water, please do so as soon as possible.

 

 

 

Welcome. This website will be used to update interested parties on NHDES’ current investigation into the presence of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) in New Hampshire. You can access our previous webpage for archived information:  https://www.des.nh.gov/organization/commissioner/pfoa.htm .