Southern New Hampshire Regional Water Project | WWD Weekly Digest
Dec. 30, 2021
Seven communities and utilities joined forces to establish interconnected drinking water distribution through MTBE contamination funding.
MTBE contamination in New Hampshire spurred a handful of communities in the southern area of the state to initiate an ambitious project for drinking water distribution and treatment. Seven entities — both public and private — banded together to construct 8.5 miles of transmission pipe with six metering stations and more than eight points for pressure changes to serve seven communities: Manchester, Derry, Salem, Windham, Hampstead, Atkinson and Plaistow in New Hampshire.
In this video interview, hear from Eugene Forbes, senior technical leader with Underwood Engineers; Phil Croasdale, director of Manchester Water Works; Stewart McCormak, project manager with Defelice Corporation; and Chris Hodgson, retired regional manager for DN Tanks about the project from the utility point of view. Additionally, Erin Holmes, drinking water and ground water trust fund administrator for the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, shares the perspective of the state and how the project got off the ground with the MTBE funding program.
Project Stakeholders
Owners: Municipalities of Manchester, Derry, Salem, Windham, Hampstead, Atkinson, and Plaistow, New Hampshire
Designers: Underwood Engineers, Weston & Sampson, and Lewis Engineers
Contractors: Defelice Corporation, Lewis Builders Development Inc., HAWSCO, Revoli Construction, American Excavating, and DN Tanks
Timestamps
Intro: (0:00)
The role of New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services: (2:03)
Overview of communities served by the project: (4:50)
Manchester, New Hampshire community overview: (6:04)
Defelice Corporation’s involvement for Derry & Plaistow: (8:36)
DN Tanks’ involvement in the project: (9:34)
Overall project scope and size: (12:26)
Primary challenges from DES administration: (16:42)
The collaborative nature of the project and lessons learned: (19:06)
The importance of a Memorandum of Understanding: (22:53)
Challenges for Manchester: (23:57)
The logistical issues of the project: (27:06)
Overcoming weather and construction challenges: (27:55)
Getting equipment into place on time: (28:40)
Gaining insights from other regional water networks: (31:03)
