Residents, businesses, municipal facilities and organizations that own property in West Barnstable are part of the West Barnstable Fire District (WBFD, map shown below). As such, they elect three members to its Board of Water Commissioners, for staggered, three-year terms, at the annual WBFD meetings that are held during April. Water Commissioners are volunteers.
Brian Paradise, Chair... (2024-2027) .......paradibr@gmail.com
Kristine Clark, Clerk..... (2023-2026) ........kris@meganet.net
Lisa Hendrickson...........(2022-2024) ........ljknorge3@gmail.com
Figure 1. Map showing the boundaries of the West Barnstable Fire District. (See the Fire District Maps page.)
The WBFD and its Board of Water Commissioners were established by State Acts in 1949 and 1966, respectively. Under MGL Ch. 40 Sect. 39E, Boards of Water Commissioners are granted State authority to manage, improve and control waters and property taken, acquired, erected or constructed for a public water supply system.
There is currently no public water supply system in the West Barnstable Fire District to serve our fire department and taxpayers. Instead, residents and business owners are responsible for maintaining their own private wells. They are also subject to a tax that is paid to support the District’s Fire Department, professional services requested by the Water Commissioners to carry out their duties, and for operation of the Prudential Committee.
Private water supply wells, unlike public water supply wells, are not protected by MA laws and regulations; the latter which undergo quarterly water quality testing and any types of treatment that might be necessary. As your Water Commissioners, one of our duties is to preserve and protect the sole-source aquifer that supplies water to our private and business water supply wells in the WBFD. This protection extends to the wetlands and surface water bodies that are often functionally connected to the aquifer. We also support the purchase of conservation land within the WBFD, to increase watershed and aquifer protection from pollution and impacts from drought conditions like those we have experienced more frequently in recent years. By doing so now, while there are still some undeveloped land parcels available within the District, we will be increasing the protection and sustainability of “clean” water supply sources.
Several examples of our ongoing work involve: supporting Town purchases of conservation land for water supply protection; disseminating information to you regarding water quality testing of your water supply wells and methods to protect them from pollution; posting of household hazardous waste disposal dates at the Barnstable Transfer Station; and keeping WB residents informed about the Town’s current search for a new public water supply with one of the potential sites being located in our District within the Bridge Creek Conservation Area (see Current News below).
Water Commissioner
Kristine Clark
kris@meganet.net
Water Commissioner
Lisa Hendrickson
ljknorge3@gmail.com
Water Commissioner
Brian Paradise - Chair
paradibr@gmail.com