By Jean Pocha
Water quality concerns in the community will be determined following a project approach that Water and Environmental Technologies (WET) will use to collect and analyze information, shared Bill Decker, Sewer Board General Manager at the Seeley Lake Community Council meeting earlier this month.
“WET proposed a three-phase approach to resolving Seeley Lake’s wastewater issues. WET committed to working side-by-side with the Sewer District throughout this process to develop a practical situation that is both economical and appropriate,” Decker said at the board’s regular meeting on Nov. 14.
Using a PowerPoint presentation, Decker shared the method WET follows to determine solutions.
“There are many factors outside of scientific data and engineering design that determine the ultimate success of a project,” according to the presentation. “Understanding what is driving the change, who the stakeholders are, valuing all opinions and maintaining good communication are equally as important. We want to start out by getting a better understanding of these concepts.”
Phase one and two of the three-phase diagnostic process will focus on data collection and review to prioritize existing needs, identifying systems in need of upgrades, and determining appropriate and cost effective treatment alternatives. WET and SepticNet will present this information to stakeholders, the sewer district, residents and regulatory agencies to get feedback to determine the best path moving forward.
The third phase will focus on engineering design, permitting and construction management for the system installation. SepticNet/WET will provide an engineer of record as appropriate to oversee construction and to communicate with stakeholders throughout construction on progress, schedule and budget.
Groundwater is currently tested in the lake and two existing wells by the Seeley Lake Water District. WET proposed a budget that would allow for 14 new groundwater testing wells, rather than the 10 previously planned. Drilling for the 14 groundwater testing wells should begin soon after Thanksgiving, reported Cheri Thompson of the sewer board. Groundwater testing will be done quarterly until the engineers have collected enough information.
“We need to identify any areas that could actually be causing water quality issues and treat those,” Decker said. “If an area is not contributing to the problem, there’s no need treating it.”
Meeting participants wondered what the timeline could be for the process of date collection, review and planning.
“We can’t say for sure, but it could be up to six years to get a plan,” Decker said.
Surface water testing of Seeley Lake and the Clearwater River was going to be done in partnership with Clearwater Resource Council. These tests would determine contaminants as well as eDNA tests to determine if the source of contaminants was human- or wildlife-related. Plans have been put on hold, and the timing is now unknown due to the resignation of Caryn Miske, CRC Executive Director.
WET will assist Seeley Lake Sewer District in identifying and applying for local, state, and federal grants and low interest loans to fund the project, according to the presentation.
The complete PowerPoint presentation is available at http://www.Seeleysewer.org/documents
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