Our charge
The Wolcott Select Board authorized the establishment of the Wolcott Village Wastewater Committee in 2020. The Committee was tasked in spearheading an effort to determine the feasibility, and if appropriate, oversee the implementation, of a community septic system. Committee members include Wolcott residents, two select board members, staff from the Lamoille Regional Planning Commission, and sub-contracted scientists and engineers.
Why Wolcott Wastewater?
Many of the existing septic systems are located in the floodplain and are currently failing. The proposed community system supports flood resilience and will help protect water quality. It will assist in maintaining homes and businesses in the village.
The village community septic system is needed due to poor soils within the village, such as hydric (wetlands) soils, shallow depth to bedrock, and proximity to the Lamoille River and flooding potential.
A large portion of the village was significantly flooded in the July 2023 and December 2024 storms. Many of the existing systems are at the end of their service lives and built before the VT Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) wastewater permit was in place. The new system would allow existing businesses to expand, attract new businesses, build the grand list, and increase housing opportunities for the town.
A Preliminary Engineering Report (PER) has been completed by Stone Environmental. The Wolcott Elementary School property has been identified in the PER as the best site for the community system to be located due to its sandy soils. The system would include all of Wolcott Village in its service area.
Funding
The Committee is working closely with VT DEC, which will oversee the permitting of system. To date, the Committee has secured $4,765,000 million dollars of grant funding for the survey, design, permitting, and construction of the system—this amount is more than we need! No funding from the town is needed.
The project also has been nominated for $1,000,000 in Congressionally Directed Spending for FY25. The Town will be notified in the fall of 2024 if it is officially included in the FY25 congressional budget.
Votes
We have had success at every crucial moment: a Selectboard vote, a School Board vote on June 4, 2024, a Public-School Meeting vote, a Town Bond vote on June 11, 2024, and a revote on the Town Bond.
All these votes were in favor of moving the wastewater project forward.
