Maine: Norway - Three-Town Effort Protects Wellhead Outside Town's Border Background Norway is a small town in southwestern Maine, part of a geographically-linked tri- town area together with South Paris and Oxford. In 1965, Norway installed its single municipal ground water well, slightly less than one-half mile beyond its border, in the Town of Oxford. Location of the well outside of Norway's jurisdiction has recently presented some major challenges with respect to source water protection. When the well was installed, Norway and the surrounding area was mostly farmland; however, the region has developed quickly in the last few decades. The zone around the well in question is now a commercial area that contains several gas stations, restaurants, and other businesses associated with rapid commercial development. Such development jeopardizes the quality of the town's water, and the inability of Norway to regulate the growth surrounding the well is frustrating to those working to preserve the purity of the town's drinking water. Priority Contamination Threat Bacteria, fertilizer, fuel constituents, inorganic contaminants, MTBE, nitrates, pesticides from a commercial area are the priority contamination threats. Local Involvement and Developing the Protection Plan Because Norway's water supply well is located in another town, it was necessary for Norway to develop a local team approach to protect its water supply. Norway, South Paris and Oxford all agreed to hold public meetings to discuss drinking water protection. Several public meetings were held in 1994 in all three towns for general input on development of the Source Water Protection Plan, including development of a Wellhead Protection (WHP) ordinance. The ordinance was presented to each of the three towns for a vote and was passed in all three. Educational materials were distributed to homeowners regarding ground water protection. Management Measures In 1988, Norway began the process of developing a wellhead protection study of the area around its well. In cooperation with Oxford and South Paris, and with assistance from the Maine Rural Water Association, Norway acquired grants and established a framework for program initiatives. A hydrogeological firm was hired to assist the town in delineating the well's zone of contribution. Three zones were delineated based on time-of-travel (TOT) calculations. Zone I has a 200-day TOT, Zone II a 1,000-day TOT, and Zone Ilia 2,500-day TOT. Office of Water (4606M) 816F100015 January 2010 ------- This planning and foresight worked to the town's considerable advantage, when, in 1990, gasoline was discovered leaking from an underground storage tank just 600 feet from the municipal well. Fortunately, the wellhead protection area had already been characterized and contingency measures had been planned. Consequently, the Town of Norway, together with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection, was able to determine the nature of the contamination and quickly shut down the well to contain the plume of fuel-related compounds. Thanks to the earlier wellhead protection study, considerable information on aquifer conditions was available in the area of the Norway well. The quick response prevented contamination from affecting the well; in fact, no contamination was ever detected at the well. As a precaution, and to avoid drawing the contaminant plume closer, the well was shut down for 15 months, while the contamination was pumped, and the water treated until clean and returned to the nearby river. During that period, the Norway Water Department purchased water from the Town of South Paris via a preexisting water connection, through a contingency agreement that had been reached before the emergency. After the contamination incident was resolved, the Town of Norway continued with its wellhead protection efforts. Educational materials were developed to inform homeowners and businesses about steps to protect ground water. In addition, a Wellhead Protection Ordinance was passed, modeled after a generic ordinance developed through an EPA Wellhead Demonstration Grant Project. This ordinance protects portions of the wellhead protection area within Norway town limits by regulating priority land uses. Best Management Practices (BMPs) have been recommended for potential contaminant sources in the area. The Town of South Paris has adopted a similar ordinance to protect source water within its jurisdiction. The long-term vision is that each district within the tri-town area will agree to a requirement to notify the others when any threatening actions or events occur within the WHP area. Contingency Planning In addition to the agreements with South Paris and Oxford to purchase drinking water in case of an emergency, Norway has persuaded the Town of Oxford to equip all fire trucks with absorbent padding in the event of an accidental spill in the vicinity of the well, and to alert the Norway Water Department (NWD) if a spill occurs. For its part, Norway performs a comprehensive set of water quality analyses of six monitoring wells located around its municipal well during the spring and fall. If NWD officials suspect that the well is in danger, then monitoring may be performed more frequently. Future plans include a requirement under the Source Water Protection Program that each water district inform the others when any action or event occurs within the WHP area which could damage water quality. Measuring Program Effectiveness Office of Water (4606M) 816F100015 January 2010 ------- The effectiveness of Norway's drinking water protection program is measured both by regular monitoring of water quality and by the effectiveness of the town's response to accidents and other emergencies. Monitoring wells are checked once per year to ensure continued program effectiveness. Surveys of potential sources of contamination are performed and updated periodically. Program effectiveness was demonstrated through the quick and effective response to an accidental gasoline spill that occurred in 1990. Rapid remedial action was possible, due to the extensive information that had been gathered through the source water protection program prior to the accident. Contact Ryan Lippincott, General Manager Norway and Oxford Maine Water Districts 19 Danforth Street Suite 2 Norway, Maine 04268 (207)743-2414 Office of Water (4606M) 816F100015 January 2010 ------- |