Oak Bluffs Gets DEP Green Light for Next Wastewater Chapter

The Oak Bluffs wastewater facility is poised to undergo a complete makeover in the next few years, reconfiguring the infrastructure and increasing the capacity for the town, hooking up new neighborhoods to the plant.

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Vineyard Under Air Quality Advisory Friday

Poor air quality resulting from elevated ozone levels on Martha’s Vineyard may pose a risk to sensitive groups, according to an air quality advisory released by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Friday.

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State Issues Air Quality Alert for Dukes County

Elevated levels of ozone in Dukes County prompted the state to issue an air quality alert Wednesday.

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Free Well Testing in West Tisbury

Health agents in West Tisbury are encouraging private property owners to take advantage of a free well water testing program to check for the chemicals known as PFAS.

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Edgartown Takes Steps to Keep Harbor Pumps Open This Summer
Will Sennott

With gas pumps once again locked and in violation of environmental regulations, R.M. Packer Co. and the town of Edgartown have come to a short-term agreement.

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Water Order Lifted, State Road and Chilmark Tavern Okay to Open
Remy Tumin

Owners of two up-Island restaurants said they were complying with state regulations following a bad water test that led to their closure late last week.

The state department of environmental protection ordered the drinking water shut off at the Chilmark Tavern and State Road Restaurant after total coliform bacteria and E. coli bacteria were found in routine water samples from the restaurants.

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State Lists Alleged Violations at Home of Wastewater Chief
Chris Burrell

State Lists Alleged Violations at Home of Wastewater Chief

By CHRIS BURRELL

An investigation underway by the Massachusetts Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) has found nine alleged violations of
state environmental codes on property in Oak Bluffs owned by Joseph N.
Alosso, chief operator of two municipal sewage treatment plants on the
Island and former board of health chairman in Oak Bluffs.

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State Finds Lead in the Water; Edgartown Posts Health Alert
Jim Hickey

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has
found elevated levels of lead in two samples of the Edgartown water
supply, a violation of state clean drinking water standards.

The violation forces the Edgartown water department to perform
additional testing on the public water supply and to inform the public
of the violation. An advertisement alerting residents to the violation
and paid for by the town appears in today's edition of the
Gazette.

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Senator O’Leary Confirms Standoff Over Key Study
Mike Seccombe

A continuing contractual dispute between the state Department of Environmental Protection and the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth is delaying efforts to clean coastal waters all over the Cape and Islands, and must be solved quickly, state Sen. Robert O’Leary said yesterday.

The 11-month standoff has left towns without important data, compiled under the Massachusetts Estuaries Project, documenting the health and particularly the nutrient loading of their estuaries, bays and ponds. The information is needed for remediation and planning.

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Edgartown Great Pond Nitrogen Levels Lead to New Sewer Rules
Jim Hickey

Island authorities must radically cut nitrogen pollution in the Edgartown Great Pond, state officials told a public hearing Wednesday at Edgartown town hall about the final report from the Massachusetts Estuaries Project.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection held the hearing to discuss the pond’s nitrogen problems and the requirement for a Comprehensive Wastewater Management Plan to limit nitrogen seeping into it.

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