Fighting Back Against ‘Unfunded Mandates’ in Phosphorus Removal

The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has made it clear they will not consider less stringent levels when it comes to phosphorus reduction in the Quinnipiac River.

Now Southington officials are sending their own message.

The on Monday approved a motion allowing the town to enter a coalition and hire a lobbyist at the state level to help delay the onset of requirements and to further help find outside aid for phosphorus removal, a program that if held at the federally mandated level could cost the town more than $20 million.

“The meeting with staff from DEEP seemed less about finding a more reasonable approach and more so was focused on explaining why this was going to happen. At this stage, we have worked alongside other towns and believe that hiring a government lobbyist is the best option,” said Garry Brumback.

The proposed hiring of a lobbyist comes a little more than a week after DEEP officials, , Meriden, Wallingford and Cheshire. The meeting did little to curb fears, however, as DEEP officials held their stance in regard to phosphorus requirements.

Under the latest mandate, set forth by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and enforced through oversight from the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Southington is one of four towns within the Quinnipiac River Watershed that will be required to drastically reduce their phosphorus discharge levels.

The current plan presented by the DEEP calls for a maximum discharge level of 0.2 mg/L — something that , or more, to implement.

“Current legislation allows for no grant reimbursements,” Brumback said Monday. “What we are now recommending is hiring a governmental relations lobbyist to take on efforts on behalf of the coalition. We are, in essence, turning over all responsibilities that we possibly can to him in hopes of getting funding and more time to implement this efficiently and at a fair cost to taxpayers.”

The council approved the motion, which would let Southington pay a portion of the $25,000 cost for a lobbyist, unanimously with only one modification that requires other towns join in. Councilman John Barry said he wanted assurance that the town would “not be left alone in battling this mandate.”

But Southington already has support and the coalition of towns could grow in the near future.

“This is an effort that Meriden is already on board with and the town of Wallingford could approve a motion to join the effort (Tuesday),” Brumback said. “We have also had representatives of Waterbury and Danbury reach out and express interest in joining as well.”

The initial coalition existed of the four Quinnipiac towns, but Cheshire backed out of the coalition and has made a decision to move forward in renovating their facility to address phosphorus removal.

Although Cheshire Town Manager Michael Milone said the town “is unhappy with the unrealistic expectations,” the Cheshire council feels it would be beneficial to simply move forward. With lower phosphorus levels within their portion of the river and additional mandates likely in the future, the council is instead looking at completing upgrades to handle the mandated removal.

The project would be less expensive in Cheshire and the town already has agreements for outside funding they feel they could use — funding that Cheshire officials said they are not willing to risk losing by fighting the mandate.

The town’s moving forward is a good decision, said local lawyer and development expert Seb Bovino. Bovino used the public hearing portion of Monday’s meeting to praise the council, although he believes more should still be done.

“These phosphorus mandates are based on unproven science,” Bovino said. “I think the towns should take it a level further and hire a scientist working in the field to look at the issue. The hiring could be used to develop a waiver that would change the time and minimum requirements.”

Brumback said that while the town will continue to seek a reduction — the goal is to change the level requirement to 0.7 mg/L, which would reduce costs to about $50,000 — the issue is not going away.

Barry said the effort is fine, as long as proper steps are in place to enforce it in a fair and cost efficient way.

“This is a mandate that is unfair to people of Southington and a cost that is just unaffordable,” Barry said. “We as community have invested in proactive programs for clean air, clean water, etc. This approach may be the best way to move forward right now.”