Provincetown is getting a $1 million grant to make its sewer infrastructure more resilient and prevent the sewer emergency of 2022 from happening again.
Two years ago, the sewer system’s critical central vacuum system malfunctioned, after heavy rain caused a failure in the electrical panel.
It was the second time in 13 years that sewage spilled into homes and streets due to a system failure.
But now, funds from the state’s Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) program will go towards newer pumps, updated technology, and moving the electrical infrastructure to the second floor of a building, making it more resilient to flooding.
“When we get this kind of grant money, it means we're able to improve the quality of life for our year-round and visiting residents with with better parks, with better roads, and not having to sacrifice other things,” said Braden Witt, senior project manager for the Department of Public Works in Provincetown.
A vacuum sewer system functions by using negative air pressure to move sewage to a central treatment plant. Without power, sewage can back up throughout the system.
Sherry Prada, deputy director of the town’s Department of Public Works, said the system failure on August 11, 2022, led to sewage backups in 30 homes, and forced Commercial Street businesses to shut down for 48 hours.
“I have the phone records — which I literally got a little PTSD reviewing this yesterday — calling our big restaurants downtown, telling them that they need to stop flushing toilets, they need to stop doing dishes,” she said.
The impacted area included Commercial Street from Snow Street to Point Street, and properties on the sewer system on Bradford Street between Conwell Street and Prince Street.
It was a major interruption for businesses and visitors, alike.
“[So we’re] just trying as much as we can,” Witt said, “to eliminate single points of failure.”
The upgrades can’t come soon enough, town officials said. Provincetown is working to move away from septic systems and rely entirely on a sewer system to manage wastewater by 2030.
