“We are the scandal!”
I just went up to the Town Highway Garage to talk to Dwight, the foreman. I wanted to go to the source to get some insight about the salt shed controversy. Well, it’s not really a controversy because I think just about everyone agrees that the salt shed needs to be replaced. Yes, there is now a blue tarp that has been hung across the opening of the salt shed. It was constructed to protect the salt from precipitation. So, one might call it a cover-up, but certainly not in a brewing scandal kind of way!
I learned that not only has the Bennett’s deep-water well supply been contaminated, but so has the well at the Highway Facility. The salinity level at the Facility is even higher than the Bennett’s and approaches the salt content of sea water. Our town road-crew has to drink bottled water too and the wear and tear on their skin from repeated hand washing with salt water, especially in the cold weather, raises issues. The wells from County Road through the three Bennett home sites have all been tested and are monitored. The Bennett farm deep-water well, the deep-water well at the garage, and another well nearby are showing contamination. The nearby well (I believe this home is across the street from the garage), while showing salt content has not surpassed restaurant standards. The Bennett’s shallow well is showing some signs of increased salinity as well. My understanding is that there is no danger to the swamp or Taylor’s Brook.
I did clarify that this contamination is through the aquifer and not from road run-off. This means refraining from salting the nearby road would not be a solution. Since the aquifer is contaminated, engineers will need to drill several test wells to find a new water source in a different aquifer. There is surface contamination of several different chemicals but the clay soil at the town garage isn’t letting it spread (finally, I’ve heard of a good facet of clay soil!). Read the rest of this entry »
