The Water & Sewer Advisory Board on Wednesday heard about a proposed plan that would pump more funding into the water/sewer enterprise fund.

Select Board member Matthew Kizner said tackling the issue of underfunding this enterprise fund was something he has spoken about since campaigning for his seat nearly a year ago. He explained that, in fiscal year 2025, there wasn’t enough money to fund the capital projects previously approved at Town Meeting.

“We had to rescind the approval and go through it again at the last Town Meeting,” said Kizner.

He said there weren’t effective policies in place previously to make sure this enterprise fund had sufficient capital or to generate emergency funding to address critical needs.

Kizner had prior conversations with Kyla LaPierre, the town’s chief financial officer, about this issue. He noted that other government entities must have a mandatory amount in their stabilization funds, “which is essentially 5% of the town’s operating budget.” The water/sewer enterprise fund is the only one that doesn’t.

Added Kizner: “It’s essentially our financial emergency fund, if you want to hear it that way.”

Proposal would create funding threshold

After meeting with LaPierre and consultant Matt Abrahams, Kizner said a draft policy emerged. In the proposal, the water/sewer enterprise fund would include 20% of the capital expenditures budget amount and 10% of the operating expenditures one.

“Minimally, it should prevent you from ever truly going negative,” he stressed.

He noted that this proposal wasn’t created to affect the water and sewer rates homeowners are charged. But it will allow the town to be responsive to emergency situations or large expenses like the proposed connection to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority system.

These percentages, Kizner said, provide a “safe and minimum threshold” for how much money should be held in reserve in this fund.

Member Donald Sutherland said he has seen these rates used in other towns. Kizner noted that he asked Abrahams to research the language and percentages used in other communities as examples.

Kerry Reed, the Department of Public Works director, was asked for her opinion by chair Paul Gallagher.

“My job is telling the town what we need to do and how much it’s going to cost,” she said. “Then the policymakers actually decide how to fund it.”

The DPW director had to trim capital requests from previous proposed budgets because of the town-wide effort to keep expenses down.

She added that communities that have used the percentages Kizner proposed have done so “traditionally to keep the rates down.”

Kizner said looking at this as part of a five-year plan potentially could keep rates manageable.

The board agreed that LaPierre and possibly Abrahams should be invited to a future WSAB meeting to discuss this draft plan further. The next meeting will be held March 25.

“We are thematically and directionally aligned,” said Kizner. “Let’s have a tech talk next time.”

Elevated manganese in Alprilla wells

Reed shared that elevated levels of manganese have been detected in Wells 7 and 8. They are commonly referred to as the Alprilla Farms wells because of their location on Alprilla Farm Road.

Manganese occurs naturally in drinking water because it is a common component of rocks, soil and groundwater. Reed noted that the state’s Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) found that the finished water contained manganese levels above MassDEP’s Office of Research and Standards Guidance Level (ORSGL).

“We’ve been aware of this for a while,” said Reed. “Our water sources have high manganese and high iron.”

She quoted a MassDEP letter from Jan. 26 stating that the manganese levels found were above the advisory level of 0.3 parts per liter.

“It’s important to know that this is not a regulatory level,” Reed stressed. “It is an advisory level.”

Information is available on the town’s website.  A public notice will be published in the Independent, Reed added.

“I hope that nobody gets overly scared about it,” she said.

Reed said manganese levels tend to build up over a person’s lifetime. She suggested that caregivers provide bottled water in formula for their infants.

Added Reed: “Our long-term plan is still the connection to the MWRA.”

Gallagher noted that home filtration systems can help.

On a related note, member Rob Scott noted that the town will be voting on replacement well for Well 1 at Annual Town Meeting on May 2.

Conservation urged as drought continues

Gallagher noted that Hopkinton still remains in a state of drought. In addition, he said the regions to the south and east have increased from a Level 1 to a Level 2 status, mirroring the town’s region.

Reed and WSAB members stressed the importance of water conservation, even in cooler months.

The DPW recently won a grant to help spread community awareness, Reed said. She hopes to have tables at town events such as Annual Town Meeting on May 2 and the winter farmers market to educate residents. A marketing company will help with a communications strategy and updating the website.

Other suggestions included creating pollinator gardens and rain gardens with students and connecting with the Hopkinton Garden Club and Keefe Regional Technical High School in Framingham.

At this time of year, Reed urged residents to check their plumbing for leaks as another way to conserve water.

“As soon as it starts getting sunny, they start turning those irrigation systems on full blast,” Reed said of some residents.

The DPW will begin sending targeted letters to people and neighborhoods that tend to engage in this practice despite drought warnings, Reed shared. Newer subdivisions likely will receive these messages as well.

Reed stressed that ignoring conservation messaging not only leads to fines but also negatively impacts neighbors.

Added Sutherland: “This is a huge job, tackling the lawn culture of America.”