The Advisory Board supports a number of policies that aim to lessen MWRA’s impact on the environment. These measures fall into the following categories:
Water
- Lead loan program – to reduce corrosion and to help communities repair their water systems by replacing lead service lines
- Watershed protection – to protect and manage water supply areas
Wastewater
- Outfall – to thoroughly monitor Deer Island’s treated wastewater effluent to ensure it has minimal impact on conditions in the Boston Harbor
- Pellets – to beneficially reuse sludge from wastewater as fertilizer
- CSO plan – to reduce the number of combined sewer overflows into nearby surface waters
Climate Change
- Clean energy – to support MWRA’s investments in renewable energy, including solar, wind, combined heat and power, and hydroturbines
- Storm preparedness – to outfit facilities to withstand more extreme storms and subsequent flooding
- Stormwater – to advocate for Massachusetts primacy, and to provide resources for communities as they put together their stormwater management programs