EASTHAM — There’s only one item up for a vote at Eastham’s special town meeting at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, June 23: a $170-million authorization for a sewer system around the Salt Pond watershed. Construction would likely begin in fall 2026, but the meeting has been called for this summer because the state is offering the town a $50-million low-or-no-interest loan for the project.
The deadline for the town to accept that loan is the end of June.
This year’s loans from the State Revolving Fund (SRF) function more like a line of credit — the town can use and repay up to $50 million multiple times until the sewer system is fully built. That “automatically renewable” feature may not be included in next year’s SRF loan program, which is why there is a sense of urgency among Eastham’s leaders about the vote.
Finance Director and Assistant Town Administrator Rich Bienvenue told the select board on June 2 that the vote on Article 1 will be “the most consequential decision that this town has made, and will make, for a generation to come.”
Article 1 is a Proposition 2½ override, so it requires a two-thirds majority at town meeting, followed by a simple majority at a town election. Early voting for that election has already begun; the final day of voting is Tuesday, June 24.
The wastewater system will be the most expensive project ever undertaken by the town, and the town meeting warrant says that if Article 1 passes, it “would increase property taxes by approximately $1,000 annually.”
Bienvenue said the eventual per-household cost for a sewer system will wind up being higher than that if Article 1 doesn’t pass this year. Construction costs are rising rapidly, and there is no guarantee that a state SRF loan would be able to cover the whole cost of a sewer system in the future, he said.
If It Passes
Eastham voters approved $6 million for the design and engineering of a wastewater treatment system in May 2023. A state-required Targeted Watershed Management Plan was published in 2024; the state Dept. of Environmental Protection approved it later that year.
The treatment facility for the proposed sewer system will be located at the current DPW site at 555 Old Orchard Road, near the metal pile at the back of the town dump. That location has drawn criticism from nearby residents who say they’re worried about noise, odors, and disturbances related to construction.
For people with homes in the Phase 1 service area, there will also be costs to connect to the sewer. Town officials expect them to run from $8,000 to $16,000, according to information printed in the town meeting warrant.
Homeowners whose primary residence is Eastham can use the state’s Septic Tax Credit to reduce those costs, the meeting booklet says. According to the state’s rules, 60 percent of a homeowner’s connection costs, up to a total of $18,000, can be deducted from the amount they owe in state income taxes over several years. (The tax credit is capped at $4,000 per year, so it can take up to five years to collect the entire credit.)
Bienvenue said at the June 2 meeting that some of the town’s short-term rental tax revenue — which had been diverted into a Wastewater Stabilization Fund to offset the costs of a sewer system — would help pay for the project, along with grants from the Cape Cod and Islands Water Protection Fund, which is also funded by short-term rental taxes.
If It Fails
Eastham is currently under a mandate to reduce nitrogen runoff into vulnerable estuaries like Salt Pond to comply with the 1972 Clean Water Act. In 2024, the DEP approved two potential solutions: either the town can construct a municipal sewer system as outlined in its Targeted Watershed Management Plan, or it can require all property owners to install Innovative/Alternative, or I/A, septic systems.
In that case, every property owner — not just those near the Salt Pond watershed — would have to install an I/A system on their property. Those who didn’t would eventually fail a mandatory inspection and would be at risk of legal action by the state.
According to the booklet for the special town meeting, installing I/A systems would cost each homeowner about $50,000 per property plus $4,000 per year in maintenance for the 20-year life of the system.
I/A systems do not remove as much nitrogen from wastewater as a sewer system would. Currently, the most advanced I/A systems approved for general use reduce nitrogen levels to 19 mg/L, according to the state DEP — significantly higher than the 3 mg/L that a sewer system would achieve.
“If we don’t do a centralized sewer system and everybody decides they want to do their I/As, what will be coming down the road would be some sort of administrative consent order — or a third-party lawsuit that will force us to build a plant,” Bienvenue told the select board on June 2.
While the focus of the special town meeting will be on the Salt Pond watershed, Eastham’s problem isn’t limited to Salt Pond, select board member Jamie Demetri said on June 2. The issue of nitrogen pollution extends to other watersheds — but Salt Pond lies entirely within Eastham’s jurisdiction, so the town can more easily start its sewer system there.
Board member Suzanne Bryan added that Salt Pond has experienced frequent shellfishing closures due to harmful algae blooms connected with nitrogen runoff. “Salt Pond is closed six months out of the year now,” Town Manager Jacqui Beebe said.
