So far, so good for Saugus sewer project

SAUGUS – A sweeping town-wide sewer project that is projected to take 10 years and roughly $10 million to complete is thus far on time and under budget.According to the town’s environmental attorney George Hailer, the town has hit every milestone connected with the Administrative Consent Order handed down by the Department of Environmental Protection in 2004.”Things appear to be going on schedule,” he said.And they are costing less than anticipated.The ACO includes the huge undertaking of rehabbing the town’s entire sewer system from rebuilding pump stations to relining thousands of feet of sewer lines.Phase I of the project that addresses the sewer lines is about 75 percent complete. Hailer said he is hoping to have the designs for Phase II completed by late spring and out to bid by early summer.”And we hope to start the construction in 2008,” he added.Phase II will include rehabbing sewer lines in the northeast quadrant of town in the Walden Pond/Walnut Street area.Town Manager Andrew Bisignani said, as Sewer Commissioners, Selectmen already have authorization to borrow $400,000 for the next phase, which is probably more than they will actually need. Though no one put a dollar amount to the statement, Bisignani said there has been a savings.”Prices are significantly lower than we thought they would be,” he said. “We’re way ahead of the game.”Bisignani said there will likely be a surplus from the $400,000 borrowing, but it is only the start of Phase II of a multi-phase project.Along with relining sewer pipes, Paul Ross of Camp Dresser McKee, the engineering firm overseeing the entire project, said work on the town’s main pump station was also completed.Ross said a total of three new pumps were installed at the Lincoln Avenue pump station where the average pump age was 25 years old.The main goal of the entire sewer project is to cut the inflow and infiltration of “clean” water in the system and, according to town compliance officer Stacey DePasquale, the hard work is starting to show.DePasquale said the total amount of inflow and infiltration removed from the system is now set at 951,721 gallons per day. The end result of plugging up the leaks to the system is that less sewage is sent to the Lynn treatment center, which translates to lower sewer bills for the community.