Sludge problem still mired in politics
Peabody officials agree that the 25--foot-high pile of sludge in a lagoon next to the Coolidge Avenue water treatment plant must be removed. When the sludge will be taken away and how to pay for its removal is still an issue, however.
Last week, the City Council rejected Mayor Michael Bonfanti's proposal to borrow $950,000 to remove the sludge and prevent it from piling up again.
The sludge saga dates to 1997, when a squabble between the South Essex Sewerage District, the Department of Environmental Protection, and the Environmental Protection Agency prevented the city from discharging sediment that was removed from the Ipswich River during the water purification process.
Instead of the sediment going down the sewer, the city chose to dump it in lagoons next to the water treatment plant. Although its contents were mostly dirt, iron, and alum, the state decided it was against the law and fined the city $6,000 in October 2006. The city now has until Oct. 1 to remove the sludge or face a $1,000-a-day fine.
"There's nothing of a toxic nature," said Richard Carnevale, director of the city's Department of Public Services. Carnevale said he took responsibility for the creation of the sludge areas, and said it would have been "cost-prohibitive" for the city to have removed the sludge on a regular basis during the nine-year period it had been piling up. He estimated that it would have cost the city at least $2 million a year to remove the sludge. "There was no money," said Carnevale.
Weston & Sampson, a Peabody waste-water consulting company hired by the city, advised the city last month that the problem could be fixed by spending $950,000. The biggest cost, $500,000 would be spent on removing the sludge. The rest of the funds would be used to make mechanical improvements at the plant.
Bonfanti said he first learned of the problem a couple of years ago, and stood behind Carnevale's temporary remedy for the sediment. "We're not trying to point fingers and see who is at fault. What we're trying to do is fix a problem and do it as cost-effectively as possible," said Bonfanti.
At last week's City Council meeting, the proposal to borrow the $950,000, which needed eight of 11 City Council votes to pass, was narrowly defeated, 7-2.
Two councilors, Arthur Athas and Anne Manning, did not attend.
Barry Sinewitz, who voted against the proposal, was critical of Carnevale's decision to allow the sludge to build up over the years.
"Why should the taxpayers have to pay for something that shouldn't have happened?" said Sinewitz, who acknowledged that the city would have to pay for the removal of the sludge.
Sinewitz and Councilor Rico Mello, who also voted against the proposal, suggested borrowing $500,000 for the cleanup and using $450,000 from the city's $7.2 million free-cash account to pay for the rest of the proposal.
In an interview this week, Bonfanti rejected any idea of using free cash for the project.
"Dollar and cents-wise, it makes more sense to bond at this time. Also, with the economy the way that it is, we might need that free cash for emergencies," said Bonfanti.
The proposal will be debated again at the council's next meeting next Thursday. 