1. Record of Decision for Bozrah’s Sanitary Sewer Extension
Addresses of Possible Project Locations: The project is located along Fitchville Road, Stockhouse Road, River Road, Rachel Drive, Commerce Park Road, and State Route 87 in Bozrah, and in State Routes 87 and 32 in Franklin. It will connect to the Town of Franklin sewer system on Route 32.
Municipalities where proposed action is to be located: Bozrah and Franklin
Project Description: The proposed project consists of installing wastewater collection systems in the village section of Bozrah and ultimately connect via Stockhouse Road and Route 87 to the existing Norwich Public Utilities (NPU) sewer on Route 32 in Franklin. The proposed action includes constructing approximately 15,050 linear feet of gravity sanitary sewer, 4 pumping stations, and approximately 3,610 feet of sanitary sewer force main in the Town of Bozrah. The type of construction work required to install sanitary sewer pipes in the road consist of cutting into the roadway, soil excavation and backfilling, and pavement restoration. The Town of Bozrah plans to enter into an intermunicipal agreement with the Town of Franklin to discharge wastewater into the NPU’s collection system. NPU owns and maintains a Combined Sewer Overflow system and Bozrah proposes to discharge up to 200,000 gallons per day design flows from the proposed sanitary sewer service area.
The proposed sanitary sewer service area contains residential areas, as well as areas zoned commercial and industrial that could support potential economic growth consistent with Local and State Plans of Conservation and Development. Additionally, the majority of the Town of Bozrah relies on on-site septic systems for wastewater management and most of these systems were built in the 1980s or earlier. In the Fitchville Village section many of the septic systems are over 60 years old and some serve multi-family housing. Small lot sizes, among other constraints, make most of the Village septic systems impracticable, if not impossible, to repair to meet public health code requirements.
The estimated cost of the project is around 15 million dollars. The Town of Bozrah is awarded with a 5-million-dollar grant-in-aid approved by the State’s bond commission on March 31, 2022, and a low interest 40-year USDA loan that will be taken out to fund the remaining 10 million dollars.
Connecticut Environmental Policy Act (CEPA) Determination: On November 21, 2023, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection published a Notice of Availability of an Environmental Impact Evaluation, (EIE) in accordance with Section 22a-1d of CEPA, in the Environmental Monitor.
Comments were received from the general public and from the Council on Environmental Quality, Department of Public Health, and Office of Policy and Management. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has prepared responses to the substantive issues raised in the comments on the EIE and on supplemental materials or amendments. The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection conclusion is documented in the Record of Decision for the proposed action, which also contains responses to the comments.
Agency contact:
Name: Anthony Poon
Agency: Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Address: 79 Elm Street, Hartford, CT 06106
Phone: 860-424-3605
E-Mail: Anthony.poon@ct.gov
Inquiries and requests to view and or copy documents, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, must be submitted to the sponsoring state agency:
Name: Anthony Poon
Agency: Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
Address: 79 Elm Street, Hartford, CT 06106
E-Mail: Anthony.poon@ct.gov
What happens next: The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has submitted the Record of Decision to the Office of Policy and Management (OPM) for review. Notice of OPM's determination regarding the Record of Decision will appear in a future edition of the Environmental Monitor.