Town Seeking Overdue Funds For Baboosic Lake Septic Project

A project to improve the local environment has remained without promised state funding, which is leaving the burden on the property owners.

Amherst DPW director Bruce Berry said he is frustrated at the fact that the New Hampshire legislature is ignoring their initial commitment to fund the Baboosic Lake Community Septic project.

The project was initially supposed to receive a State Aid Grant, which would pay for 30 percent of the principal and interest payments for planning, design and construction of a new sewage disposal system.

It has been two years since the last phase of the project was completed, which updated old septic systems around Baboosic Lake to control pollution into the water. This environmentally-friendly system gives each home a two-chamber tank that connects to pretreatment before arriving at the nearby leachfield.

Each home’s system has been modified to reduce both environmental and financial costs through electronic monitoring, efficient design and the cost-effective equipment.

This overhaul also goes a long way to prevent sewage from seeping into the lake, causing pollution and unwanted algae blooms. It also allows homes near the lake, which are usually restricted for seasonal use, to be used year-round. 

A total of 44 residents have signed up since construction started in 2005. Now, there are 23 Amherst property owners that must pick up the $288,429 price tag after the legislature dropped state funding.

Berry is urging legislatures to revisit this issue to restore an “erosion of confidence” the citizens have in their state, according to a letter he drafted this week. (see attached PDF)

“These taxpayers are taking up the slack,” he said in an interview on Wednesday. “If I had any idea these funds weren’t coming, maybe I wouldn't have started the project. Those who are on it are paying dearly because the legislature isn’t keeping their commitment.”

Phase 1 of the Baboosic Lake project received the promised funds, but the rest have not seen state aid. Phases 2 and 3 did receive a separate watershed grant, and the most recent phase of the project received a 50 percent grant from the Obama stimulus in 2008.

Amherst is one of the many (124 to be exact) eligible municipal projects that are on the delayed and deferred list for state funding, and more are being accepted to this day. Berry said that this is also hurting other communities who were promised funding through the State Aid Grant program, such as Jaffrey’s sewer treatment plant project. The cost for that work had to be shifted to the taxpayers.

The users of the upgraded septic system would see a 30 percent reduction in their yearly septic costs if the funds ever make their way to Amherst. They currently pay anywhere from $1,500-2,200 each year.

Berry said the town is working as hard as it can to get the state to make good on their commitment, but the situation makes him wary of applying for grants on any future projects.