Groundwater Protection Health Regulation

Regulatory Authority - M.G.L. c. 111 s. 31 and s. 122

Because groundwater is a source of drinking water for 251 of 351 communities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts the state and local governments share responsibility for maintaining high quality groundwater in sufficient quantities to meet current and future need. Board of Health regulations are one way to protect this most important resource at the local level.

The regulation conforms with the requirements of the Massachusetts' Drinking Water Regulations, 3 10 CMR 22.21(2), for source approval and with the Water Management Act and its regulatory permit program for water withdrawals, M.G.L. c.21G and 310 CMR 36.00. In sensitive water supply recharge areas not subject to the referenced regulations, the town of Belchertown has applied zoning or non‑zoning controls to the Zone Il area or Interim Wellhead Protection Area JWPA) for all public water supply sources within the boundaries of the municipality. Although these regulations and permits require zoning and non‑zoning controls within the DEP approved Zone H or IWPA, a municipality may choose to expand the protective zones beyond the Zone R. A board of health regulation can apply to existing and future land uses, for the purposes of protecting public health (see M.G.L. c. 111 - s.3 1). This regulation complements zoning or local bylaw controls for groundwater protection to provide a more complete suite of water supply protection tools. These proposed bylaws or regulations are compatible with existing municipal ordinances, bylaws, and regulations.

This health regulation applies to the water protection district and the wetlands buffer zones as appear on the Belchertown zoning map as well as buffers zones which might not appear on the zoning map due to the fact that the Belchertown zoning map is not an actual depiction of protected resource areas. Many areas are not included due to scale, size or other reasons. In those cases, the Massachusetts Orthophotoquad maps that are of medium scale (1" = 417') will be utilized. The wetland delineations on these photo-based maps are photointerpreted and thus represent a very accurate inventory of wetlands but do not replace the wetland boundary that is determined by an on-site investigation under the Wetlands Protection Act. Another  reference to be utilized will be  past permits and/or Orders of Conditions by the Conservation Commission. These typically contain on-site verification of wetland resource areas.

Wetlands and their vicinity constitute the very worst locations for the dumping of salts or refuse or for the installation of sanitary landfills, fuel storage or septic tanks. It is in this area that the zone of aeration is thinnest (in many wetlands non‑existent for at least several seasons of the year) producing a considerable reduction in the effectiveness of oxygen, microorganisms, and plants to screen pollutants from the infiltrating water. Further, the upper zone of many organic deposits is highly permeable so water moves through it rapidly to the zone of saturation or to surface drainage undergoing little filtration or biological / chemical breakdown. Since ground‑water in the wetlands area is so close to the surface, refuse installations would, of necessity, be below the water table for at least a portion of the year and contaminants would be discharged directly to the ground‑water body where they would undergo little decay. This would be of concern where wells lower the hydraulic head in or near wetlands or where wetlands are recharge areas for part of the year. More importantly, the seasonal flooding that occurs in most wetlands would result in direct contamination of surface water, which may then drain rapidly into a reservoir or affect biota. 

The preservation of wetlands and their environs for ground-water development is consistent with wise land use. It is good practice to maintain a protected zone around a well for proper sanitation. This is quite compatible with the preservation of wetlands for wildlife preservation, aesthetic purposes, or open space within a town. 

Although it is important to protect wetland discharge areas, particularly in the vicinity of wells, it is equally important to protect the recharge areas. Both the quantity and quality of water available in an aquifer depend upon the recharge it receives. Thus the recharge areas of aquifers, which may extend for many miles beyond areas suitable for well fields, are also important. (Motts, W. and O'Brien, Geology and hydrology of wetlands in Massachusetts, Publication No. 123, Special report, Water resources research center, University of Massachusetts at Amherst).

 

GROUNDWATER AND RECHARGE PROTECTION REGULATION

 Belchertown BOARD OF HEALTH

 Date of Issuance: May 30, 2002

 Section 1. PURPOSE OF REGULATION

The text in this section of the regulation includes the land use prohibitions in 3 10 CMR 22.21(2)(a) and (b), and additional prohibitions as listed below. Whereas: siting of land uses that have the potential to release hazardous waste, petroleum products, or other contaminants significantly increases the risk of contamination; and poor management practices, accidental discharges, and improper maintenance of these facilities may lead the release of pollutants; and discharges of hazardous wastes, leachate, pathogens, and other pollutants that have repeatedly threatened surface and ground water quality throughout Massachusetts; and surface and ground water resources in the town of Belchertown that contribute to the town's drinking water supplies; therefore, the Town of Belchertown adopts the following regulation, under its authority as specified in Section H, as a preventative measure for the purposes of preserving and protecting the Belchertown's drinking water resources from discharges of pollutants; and minimizing the risk to public health and the environment to Belchertown due to such discharges.

 Section 11. SCOPE OF AUTHORITY

 The Town of Belchertown Board of Health adopts the following regulation pursuant to authorization granted by M.G.L. c. 111 s.31 and s. 122. The regulation shall apply, as specified herein, to all applicable facilities within the Zone Ils and/or the Interim Wellhead Protection Areas (IWPA), and to all designated wetland buffer zones. These regulations supersede all inconsistent regulations adopted by the Board of Health prior to the effective date.

 The effective date is May 30, 2002, the date of publication in the Sentinel.

 Section 111. DEFINITIONS 

For the purposes of this regulation, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings: 

Commercial fertilizers: Any substance containing one or more recognized plant nutrients which is used for its plant nutrient content and which is designed for use, or claimed by its manufacturer to have value in promoting plant growth. This will include composted municipal sludge of type A or B including that designated as "Exceptional Quality." Commercial fertilizers do not include unmanipulated animal and vegetable manures, lime, limestone, wood ashes, and gypsum. 

Department: The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. 

Discharge: The accidental or intentional disposal, deposit, injection, dumping, spilling, leaking, incineration, or placing of toxic or hazardous material or waste upon or into any land or water so that such hazardous waste or any constituent thereof may enter the land or waters of the Commonwealth. Discharge includes, without limitation, leakage of such materials from failed or discarded containers or storage systems and disposal of such materials into any on‑site leaching structure or sewage disposal system. 

Hazardous Material: A product, waste or combination of substances which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical, toxic, radioactive, or infectious characteristics may reasonably pose a significant, actual, or potential hazard to human health, safety, welfare, or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, used, disposed or otherwise managed. Hazardous materials include, without limitation, synthetic organic chemicals, petroleum products, heavy metals, radioactive or infectious materials, and all substances defined as "toxic" or "hazardous" under Massachusetts General Laws (M.G.L.) Chapter 21C and 21E, using the Massachusetts Oil and Hazardous Substance List (3 10 CMR40.0000). The definition may also include acids and alkalis, solvents, thinners, and pesticides. 

High Groundwater Table Elevation:  The maximum highest seasonal elevation of the surface of the zone of saturation that has been historically documented or calculated.  

Interim Wellhead Protection Areas (IWPA): For public supply wells or well fields that lack a Department approved Zone 111, the Department will apply an interim wellhead protection area. This interim wellhead protection area shall be a one‑half mile radius measured from the well or well field for sources whose approved pumping rate is 100,000 gpd or greater. For wells that pump less than 100,000 gpd, the IWPA radius is proportional to the well's approved daily volume following the IWPA Chart as referenced in Division Water Supply Policy 92-01. 

Landfill: A facility established (in accordance with a valid site assignment) for the purposes of disposing solid waste into or on the land, pursuant to 310 CMR 19.006. 

Non-sanitary wastewater: Wastewater discharges from industrial and commercial facilities containing wastes from any activity other than collection of sanitary sewage, including, but not limited to, activities specified in the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Codes set forth in 3 10 CMR 15.004(6). 

Open Dump: A facility which is operated or maintained in violation of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (42 U.S.C. 4004(a)(b)), or the regulations and criteria for solid waste disposal. 

Recharge Area: The area through which water enters an aquifer. Also known as an intake area. The recharge area includes all the areas over and within 0.25 miles of the designated aquifers and area subject to protection under M.G.L. ch. 131, section 40, or resource areas regulated pursuant to 310 CMR 10.21 through 10.66. 

Septage: The liquid, solid, and semi-solid contents of privies, chemical toilets, cesspools, holding tanks, or other sewage waste receptacles. Septage does not include any material which is a hazardous waste, pursuant to 3 10 CMR 30.000. 

Sludge: The solid, semi-solid, and liquid residue that results from a process of wastewater treatment or drinking water treatment. Sludge does not include grit, screening, or grease and oil which are removed at the headworks of a facility. 

Treatment Works: Any and all devices, processes and properties, real or personal, used in the collection, pumping, transmission, storage, treatment, disposal, recycling, reclamation, or reuse of waterborne pollutants, but not including any works receiving a hazardous waste from off the site of the works for the purpose of treatment, storage, or disposal. 

Use of Toxic or Hazardous Material: The handling, generation, treatment, storage, or management of toxic or hazardous materials. 

Very Small Quantity Generator: Any public or private entity, other than residential, which produces less than 27 gallons (100 kilograms) a month of hazardous waste or waste oil, but not including any acutely hazardous waste as defined in 3 10 CMR 30.136.

Waste Oil Retention Facility: A waste oil collection facility for automobile service stations, retail outlets, and marinas which is sheltered and has adequate protection to contain a spill, seepage, or discharge of petroleum waste products in accordance with M.G.L. c. 21.5. 52A. 

Wetland buffer zones: Wetland buffer zones: That area of land extending 100' (one hundred feet) horizontally outward from the boundary of any area subject to protection under M.G.L. ch. 131, section 40, or resource areas regulated pursuant to 310 CMR 10.21 through 10.66.  

Section IV. PROHIBITIONS 

A. Notwithstanding any land uses which are otherwise permitted by local, state, and/or other federal laws, the siting of any of the following is prohibited in the Zone 11, IWPA, wetlands buffer zones, or recharge areas in Belchertown: 

1. landfills, 

2. open dumps, 

3. sludge, septage monofils, and 

4. field storage of commercial fertilizers 

5. stockpiles (disposal) of chemically treated snow and ice that have been removed from highways and roadways outside the Zone 11. 

B. Facilities for the treatment or disposal of non‑sanitary wastewater are prohibited, with the following exceptions: 

1. Replacement or repair of an existing system is exempt if the existing design capacity is not exceeded. 

2. Treatment works approved and in compliance with M.G.L. c.21E and 310 CNIR 40.000 designed for the treatment of contaminated ground or surface waters. 

The city/town should consider whether it is more appropriate to control hazardous waste facilities with a zoning bylaw. Under Chapter 40A, industrial zones are permitted and industrial facilities within an industrial zone may expand;

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C. Facilities that generate, treat, store, or dispose of hazardous waste are prohibited, with the following exceptions:

 1. very small quantity generators, 

2. household hazardous waste collection centers or collection events, 

3. waste oil retention facilities, and 

4. treatment works for the restoration of contaminated ground or surface waters in compliance with M.G.L. c.21E and 310 CMR 40.000. 

D. Removal of soil, loam, sand, gravel, or any other mineral substances within six feet of the historical high groundwater table elevation is prohibited with the following exceptions:

1. substances which are removed and redeposited within 45 days of removal on site to achieve a final grade greater than four feet above the historical high water mark; and 

2. excavations for the construction of building foundations or the installation of utilities. 

E. Land uses that result in impervious cover of more than 15%  of any lot, whichever is greater, are prohibited; unless a system of artificial recharge of precipitation is provided that will not result in the degradation of groundwater quality.

Section V. CONDITIONAL PROHIBITIONS

 The storage of certain waste materials, chemicals, and petroleum products is prohibited except if contained in accordance with the following requirements.

 1. Storage of sludge and septage is prohibited unless storage is in compliance with 310 CMR32.00.

 2. Storage of roadway de‑icing chemicals (sodium chloride, chemically treated abrasives, or other chemicals) and the storage of chemical fertilizers are both prohibited, unless the storage is in a structure that prevents the generation and release of contaminants or contaminated runoff.

3. Storage of animal manure is prohibited unless covered or contained in accordance with the standards and guidelines of the US Soil Conservation Service.

4. Storage of liquid hazardous materials is prohibited unless the materials are either in a free standing container within a building outdoors or in a free standing covered container above ground level with spill containment capacity of 110 % of the volume stored. 

5. Storage of any type of liquid petroleum products is prohibited, unless any of the following applies: 

a. the products are incidental to normal household use, including outdoor maintenance, or for the heating of a structure; 

b. waste oil retention facilities; 

c. emergency generators; and 

d. treatment works in compliance with M.G.L. c.21E and 310 CMR 40.000 designed for the restoration of contaminated ground or surface waters. 

Storage of the exempted liquid petroleum products (5. a through 5.d) must be either in a free standing container within a building outdoors or in a free standing covered container above ground level with spill containment capacity of I 10 % of the volume stored. 

6. Compliance with all provisions of this regulation must be accomplished in a manner consistent with Massachusetts Plumbing, Building, and Fire Code requirements. 

Section VI. EFFECTIVE DATES FOR ALL FACILITIES 

The effective date of this regulation is the date posted on the front page of the regulation, which shall be identical to the date of adoption of the regulation. 

1. As of the effective date of the regulation, all new construction and/or applicable change of use within the Town Belchertown shall comply with the provisions of this regulation. 

2. Certification of conformance with the provisions of this regulation by the Board of Health shall be required prior to issuance of construction and occupancy permits.