TAUNTON — Taunton’s 70-year-old wastewater treatment plant recently received a much-needed lifeline from the state as it continues implementing millions of dollars in required upgrades. 

Gov. Charlie Baker signed legislation last week allowing Taunton to renew its current wastewater treatment service agreement with contractor Veolia, a measure needed in order to remain compliant with the EPA and MassDEP.

The bill, S.2705, is necessary due to delays in construction and acquiring materials brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic. 

“This critical bill buys the city much-needed time to achieve compliance and I am proud of the work our local delegation has done on behalf of our local community,” said State Sen. Marc Pacheco, D-Taunton, presenter and lead sponsor of the bill. 

Veolia became the operator of the wastewater treatment plant through special legislation in 1996, according to the office of Mayor Shaunna O’ Connell. In 2018, the city signed a five-year renewal with Veolia, extending the contract to July 2023. 

Without the legislation, the city would not have been allowed another extension with Veolia, which also happens to be the lead contractor for all the mandatory upgrades. 

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According to O’Connell, if the city couldn’t renew its contact with Veolia, it would have had to undergo a lengthy and expensive process to procure a new vendor, one that, with no prior involvement with these repairs and upgrades, would mean higher costs to the city in operation, maintenance and improvements of the plant, as well as to the ratepayers for Taunton, Raynham and Dighton. 

Pacheco said in a written statement the legislation will help avoid extremely expensive consequences and save tens of millions of dollars for the city.

Other co-sponsors of bill include state representatives Carol Doherty, D. Taunton, Pat Haddad, D. Somerset, and Norman Orrall, R. Lakeville.

Taunton has over 300 miles of sewers and 39 pump stations that provide the 20 million gallons of wastewater that run through the treatment plant daily, according to the city’s Department of Public Works.

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After some significant upgrades in the 1970’s, which increased the facility’s efficiency in removing waste from sewer discharge, no major improvements were done to the wastewater treatment plant for decades. 

The wastewater treatment plant has encountered expensive conflicts with federal regulations for years, according to Pacheco.

In July 2018, a U.S. District Court of Appeals decision sided with the EPA, which said the city violated the conditions of its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. The EPA was allowed to impose limits on the levels of nitrogen which were being discharged into the Taunton River by its wastewater treatment plant. 

According to the DPW, the city currently has administrative consent orders with both the EPA and MassDEP requiring the city to improve all its wastewater infrastructure and meet guidelines for nitrogen discharge. 

Pacheco said the city has received millions of dollars in loans from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund for these required infrastructural upgrades. 

Over the last 15 years, $72 million has been spent just to separate Taunton’s storm water runoff system from its sewage system, according to Taunton's DPW. 

Dating back to the 1870’s in the city, both systems were originally interconnected, an antiquated process which meant a massive cross contamination when the storm water system overflowed, leading to waste discharged into local waterways where storm water ended up. 

Separating the storm water and sewage systems is complete. 

A three-phase process upgrading the system’s main pumping station, located on West Water Street, meant to minimize overflows, should be completed this year. In the end, this portion of the upgrades will cost $25 million. 

Upgrades to the city’s sludge treatment facility are estimated to cost $6 million and should be completed by the summer of 2023. 

The bulk of the remaining infrastructural improvements are to the actual wastewater treatment plant on West Water Street. According to the DPW, the two-phase project will cost $80 million and is expected to be completed by December 2023. 

The DPW added that despite all the work that still needs to be done, the wastewater treatment plant is meeting all permitted requirements for nitrogen levels with the EPA and MassDEP.