Somerville Community Letter 2021

The City of Somerville Water Department, in conjunction with the MWRA, is pleased to provide this annual newsletter to inform all Somerville residents about our water distribution system and water quality. We are happy to report that our drinking water meets all federal and state requirements. By continuing to comply with these strict regulations, the Somerville Water Department can be confident in the quality of our drinking water.

The City purchases water from the MWRA. The water is delivered through seven MWRA master meters into the City’s distribution system. Somerville’s distribution system consists of approximately 125 miles of water mains ranging from four to twenty inches in diameter, much of which was installed in the late 1800s to early 1900s. To maintain and protect the system the Water Department exercises gate valves, flushes water mains utilizing fire hydrants, maintains and replaces fire hydrants, oversees construction projects such as rehabilitation and replacement of older unlined water mains, installs and repairs service lines, and coordinates a comprehensive cross connection control program. The Water Department with assistance from our on-call contractor replaced 61 fire hydrants, 82 gate valves, and exercised 194 gate valves to improve system reliability. The Holland St. and Broadway water main rehabilitation and replacement project was completed in 2021 which included the lining of 4,100 feet, the replacement of 1,653 feet of water main, and the replacement of 64 gate valves. During the summer of 2021, we exercised 260 gate valves in our Hydrant Flushing program and flushed over 100 fire hydrants to maintain water quality. The program resulted in a list of faulty gates that were repaired/replaced in 2021.

Somerville monitors the drinking water for specific contaminants of concern on a regular basis. We collect weekly samples at 21 different locations. A total of 1042 samples were collected, and analyzed for temperature, chlorine residual, and the presence of total coliform bacteria and E. coli. Coliforms are bacteria that are naturally present in the environment and are used as an indicator that other, potentially harmful, waterborne pathogens may be present or that a potential pathway exists through which contamination may enter the drinking water distribution system. We detected coliforms and conducted a Level 1 and 2 Assessment to identify potential problems and determine (if possible) why total coliform bacteria were found in our water system on multiple occasions. We were required to take a total of five corrective actions and we completed all five.

All public water suppliers are required by the EPA to regularly test for lead and copper. Somerville tests water taps in 15 houses and 2 schools from a DEP approved list of locations. The 90th percentile lead result for 2021 was 12.9 ppb, below the Action Level of 15 ppb. The 90th percentile for copper was 110 ppb below the Action Level of 1300 ppb. The System is in compliance. In July 2021 MassDEP is- sued a Notice of Non-Compliance to Somerville due to failure to remove the number of lead service lines required in follow up to a Lead and Copper Rule exceedance in 2019. We have taken advantage of the “Lead Service Replacement Program” offered by the MWRA, and we replaced 74 lead services using a combination of the program and routine maintenance. As of the start of 2022, we believe there are 363 lead services remaining. We will continue to focus on removing lead services from the system to improve water quality in 2022.

The City of Somerville’s Water Department continues to focus on providing outstanding water quality and service reliability. Should you have questions or concerns about whether you have a lead service line or have a question about the City’s water distribution system, the Water Department is available to help. To report a problem please use the Somerville 311 system. For general inquiries or to learn about public meetings you can call us at 617-625- 6600, ext. 5850, email us at water@somervillema.gov, or you can also visit the Water Department web page at: www.somervillema.gov.