Orleans Wastewater Panel Unanimously Backs Pleasant Bay Permit Agreement Update

ORLEANS — May 14, 2026 — Orleans wastewater panel backs Pleasant Bay permit update and mulls summer betterment preview. The Wastewater Management Advisory Committee voted 6-0 at its May 14 meeting to recommend that the Select Board approve an updated inter-municipal agreement tied to the Pleasant Bay watershed permit, which DEP formally issued on approximately February 16, 2026 — the first watershed permit update since the original 2018 agreement. Chair Kevin Galligan described the IMA as "a binding regulatory commitment" and said Pleasant Bay Alliance representative Carol Ridley will join the presentation at the June 3 Select Board meeting. The committee also learned that phase three bids came in as low as $18.5 million, against an expected $25 million, with the Robert B. Our Company of Harwich as low bidder. On betterments, consultant Tim Harrison said a rough sewer-unit value could be ready by late June but that a final number cannot be set before the contractor warranty expires March 18, 2027; the committee debated releasing heavily caveated preliminary figures this summer. Environmental consultant Mike Giggy's technical briefing on innovative alternative septic systems showed a grand average total nitrogen reading of 35 milligrams per liter across 110 system readings — the same figure MEP uses as an influent assumption — and warned that performance at the required 10-milligram threshold requires "more than going in a prayer," including monthly sampling and dedicated oversight no typical homeowner can provide.