What: The condition, reliability and long-term cost of the drinking water and wastewater systems serving the Sutton school campus, which are run under contract by the district's operations vendor.
Where it stands: The School Committee heard a vendor presentation on 2026-11-09 answering its written questions. Drinking water is treated for PFAS and finished water tests non-detect; the main open item is the aging main wastewater tank, for which a certified tank inspection was recommended.
Drinking water: two wells supply the campus (a former fourth well is inactive and an irrigation well is non-potable). A 15,000 gallon storage tank gives about two days of supply; approved bulk water haulers can deliver about 6,000 gallons at a time. Both wells run through PFAS treatment and finished water results are non-detect. Reactivating the old well was described as a poor option; a third potable well would need an engineer to find a site.
Booster pumps sit in a confined-space pit that is hard to enter safely; a permanent lifting rig was suggested as a more cost-effective fix than relocating the pumps (which was described as costing in the mid six figures).
Wastewater: the main tank was installed in 1998 and is near the end of its manufacturer life expectancy after a repair some years ago. The vendor recommended a certified tank inspection (wall thickness) and said a full replacement would likely be a multi-million dollar job, probably combined with the two reuse tanks. Pump and haul during a failure was estimated at roughly 8,000 to 10,000 dollars every two days.
A state official indicated the permit language on the interceptor trench is expected to be removed at renewal and that the five-year permit extension should not be affected. Membrane filters were replaced in 2025 and three ARPA-funded projects, including a SCADA control system, are wrapping up.
Committee members asked for a list of upcoming big-ticket equipment items and discussed existing-conditions assessments and a capital stabilization fund. The vendor holds a monthly check-in with the district.