berkshire edge housatonic man falls from water tower

BERKSHIRE EDGE HOUSATONIC MAN FALLS FROM WATER TOWER SERIES

'We have a million-gallon storage tank that has about eight days of water right now.'īut Walter 'Buddy' Atwood III, chairman of the fire district's Prudential Committee, doesn't think a merger is a good idea. 'The source exceeds our daily usage by double,' Mercer said of Long Pond reservoir. Prickett calls the two systems a good match for a merger, since the water works has more than enough water supply, and the fire district, whose source is the Green River, is at capacity.

'It would keep rates down for the whole community, fire protection for the whole region.' 'Consolidation is a solid premise,' he said. But Mercer said he thinks Prickett's conclusion is sound. 'We weren't getting into too much detail because we didn't know where the board wanted to go with it.' 'This is very preliminary,' VanDeusen said. VanDeusen said that in this early study, Prickett used data from the DEP, and held off on a deeper dive until the board is certain of a direction. Prickett, whose consultation cost the town about $10,000, declined to comment on his findings. The company says it can't shoulder the cost of replacing mains without a monumental rate increase. James Mercer, who co-owns the water works, says Prickett's $22 million estimate is low, and added that Prickett did not contact the company for his report. Prickett says the smart way to go might be to join the systems, since the pipes in both will need extensive replacements 'over the coming decades,' with the Housatonic system requiring the more significant overhaul.

BERKSHIRE EDGE HOUSATONIC MAN FALLS FROM WATER TOWER SERIES

Residents flocked to a series of meetings over the past six months called by the water company and the town, clutching jugs of water that resemble iced tea, and asking the town what it plans to do. The DEP has increased its oversight and testing requirements of the company. While the federal Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Environmental Protection say discolored water is safe to drink, many of the company's 865 customers refuse and are buying bottled water. More than 800 residents in Housatonic regularly find rusty water flowing from their taps, due to the use of cast-iron mains. When the system is flushed, flaking rust from inside the pipes flows through faucets, discoloring the water, which is sometimes as dark as coffee. That study suggests a new path on Housatonic's water crisis.Ībout 80 percent of the 17 miles of water mains owned by Housatonic Water Works were installed in the mid- to late 1800s. 'I thought it would be a good idea to look at the totality of everything,' VanDeusen said.

It was concerns by the board and Department of Public Works Director Sean VanDeusen that spurred this preliminary study, begun in 2017, before Housatonic's water problems accelerated last summer.

Replacing Housatonic's mains is a $22 million proposition, according to the draft report by David Prickett of DPC Engineering of Longmeadow. 'We have no clout or power - the two entities would have to agree.'Įven if they don't, something has to give. 'It may be a deal that has to be brokered,' said Select Board Vice Chairman Ed Abrahams.

Berkshire edge housatonic man falls from water tower