Wastewater & Onsite Systems | Collection Systems
Capacity, Management, Operation, and Maintenance (CMOM)
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City of Somersworth, New Hampshire
The next utility to receive assessment was the City of Somersworth, New Hampshire. This utility was the project’s medium-sized community. In Somersworth, the wastewater collection system is maintained by Department of Public Works and Utilities personnel, who generally spend 10-15% of their time (annually) on wastewater collection system issues. The collection system consists of approximately 35 miles of sewers and three pump stations, which serve roughly 3,300 homes and businesses. At the time of evaluation, the three pump stations were being maintained by a contract-operations firm that was also running the wastewater treatment plant in Somersworth.
Staff interviews were conducted in Somersworth in October 2006. The interviews covered the entire Department of Public Works and Utilities organization and also included staff from the contract-operations firm responsible for the industrial pretreatment program and the operation and maintenance of the wastewater pump stations. Field observations were conducted in October 2006. In August 2007, a consensus workshop was held with Department of Public Works and Utilities management. Once the consensus workshop was completed, the Recommendation and Action Matrix was developed.
For the City of Somersworth, its highest priorities for immediate improvement centered on maintenance of right-of-ways, contingency planning, and the impact of non-core business functions. This last item is a result of city DPW personnel also maintaining streets, cemeteries, and parks for the community and the associated impact on their ability to plan appropriately and respond effectively to collection system issues.