[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 82 (Friday, April 28, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20989-20991]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-10507]



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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

[FRL 5196-7]


Sole Source Aquifer Designation for the Broad Brook Basin of the 
Barnes Aquifer

AGENCY: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In response to a petition from the Barnes Aquifer Protection 
Advisory Committee and the Town of Easthampton, Massachusetts, notice 
is hereby given that the Regional Administrator of the U.S. 
Environmental Protection Agency--New England (EPA) has determined that 
the Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes Aquifer satisfies all determination 
criteria for designation as a sole source aquifer, pursuant to Section 
1424(e) of the Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C., section 300h-3(e). 
The following findings were made in accordance with the designation 
criteria: the Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes Aquifer supplies more 
than 50% of the water needs for the communities within the service area 
boundaries; there are no viable alternative sources of sufficient 
supply; the boundaries of the designated area and the project review 
area have been reviewed and approved by the EPA; and, if contamination 
were to occur, it would pose a significant public hazard and a serious 
financial burden to the communities within the aquifer service area. As 
a result of this action, the EPA may review, suggest modifications to, 
or withhold funding for, any federally financially assisted projects 
proposed for construction within the Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes 
Aquifer that may pose an adverse risk of ground water contamination.

DATES: This determination shall become effective May 12, 1995.

ADDRESSES: The data upon which these findings are based are available 
to the public and may be inspected during normal business hours at the 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency--New [[Page 20990]] England, Water 
Management Division, One Congress Street, Boston, MA 02203.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jerome J. Healey, Chief of the Water 
Management and Water Supply Branch, EPA--New England, JFK Federal 
Building, WSB, Boston, MA 02203; (617) 565-3610.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    Section 1424(e) of the Safe Drinking Water Act, 42 U.S.C., section 
300h-3(e), states:

    If the Administrator determines, on his own intiative or 
petition, that an area has an aquifer which is the sole or principal 
drinking water source for the area and which, if contaminated, would 
create a significant hazard to public health, he shall publish 
notice of that determination in the Federal Register. After the 
publication of any such notice, no commitment for federal financial 
assistance (through a grant, contract, loan guarantee, or otherwise) 
may be entered into for any project which the Administrator 
determines may contaminate such aquifer through a recharge zone so 
as to create a significant hazard to public health, but a commitment 
for federal financial assistance may, if authorized under another 
provision of law, be entered into to plan or design the project to 
assure that it will not so contaminate the aquifer.

    On December 17, 1993, the EPA received a petition from the Barnes 
Aquifer Protection Advisory Committee and the Town of Easthampton, 
Massachusetts, requesting the designation of the Broad Brook Basin of 
the Barnes Aquifer as a sole source aquifer Section 1424(e) of the 
SDWA. The Sole Source Aquifer designation process consists of four 
phases, as outlined in the Sole Source Aquifer Designation Petitioner 
Guidance: Phase I--Petition Preparation, Phase II--Initial Petition 
Review/Determination of Completeness, Phase III--Detailed Review/
Technical Verification, and Phase IV--Designation Determination. The 
Water Management Division has determined that the Barnes Aquifer 
Protection Advisory Committee's and the Town of Easthampton's petition 
fully satisfies the first three phases of the designation process.

II. Basis for Determination

    Among the factors considered by the Regional Administrator as part 
of the detailed review and technical verification process for 
designating an area under Section 1424(e) were:
    1. The Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes Aquifer is a high-yielding 
stratified drift aquifer which the service area population relies on 
for more than 50% of its drinking water needs.
    2. There exists no viable economical alternative drinking water 
source or combination of sources to supply the designated service area.
    3. The EPA has found that the Barnes Aquifer Protection Advisory 
Committee and the Town of Easthampton have appropriately delineated the 
boundaries of the aquifer recharge area, project designation area and 
project review area.
    4. While the quality of the Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes 
Aquifer's ground water is considered to be good, it is highly 
vulnerable to contamination due to its geological characteristics and 
possible land-use activities. The designated area is a stratified drift 
aquifer consisting of shallow sand and gravel deposits. The shallow 
nature of the aquifer allows contaminants to be rapidly introduced into 
the ground water with minimal assimilation. It is this high 
vulnerability to contamination, especially in the southern portion of 
the Basin, coupled with the aquifer's value as the principal source of 
drinking water for the residents served, that could pose a significant 
public health hazard.

III. Description of the Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes Aquifer 
Designated Area and Project Area

    The Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes Aquifer is located in Hampshire 
and Hampden Counties, Massachusetts, approximately 100 miles west of 
Boston. Part of the Connecticut River watershed, the Broad Brook Basin 
is approximately nine square miles in area, and encompasses portions of 
the Towns of Easthampton, Southampton (Hampshire County), and the City 
of Holyoke (Hampden County).
    Broad Brook begins its headwaters south of Mount Tom and flows 
south for approximately three miles, then north about four miles from 
Rock Valley to Nashawannuck Pond in Easthampton. The topography of the 
aquifer ranges from level ground at 150 feet above mean sea level to 
the summit of Mount Tom at 1,200 feet above mean sea level. Volcanic 
and sedimentary rocks of Triassic age underlie the basin. These 
formations are overlain with unconsolidated deposits of sand, gravel, 
silt and clay laid down by glacial ice, meltwater streams and 
proglacial lakes during and following the advance and retreat of the 
Wisconsinan (Laurentide) Ice Sheet, approximately 22,000 to 14,000 
years ago. Ground water in these deposits flows predominantly south to 
north, and is partially confined by clay deposits in the northern 
portion of the area.
    The aquifer includes a mixture of open space, forests and wetlands, 
and supports agriculture, recreation, and an increasing number of 
residential and commercial uses. The Easthampton Water Department 
operates three municipal wells that draw ground water from the Broad 
Brook Basin and serve approximately 15,600 people in Easthampton and 
bordering areas of Northampton and Southampton. The aquifer provides 
64% of drinking water in the service area, making it eligible for 
designation as a Sole Source Aquifer. Use of alternative supplies of 
water outside the aquifer was found to be economically infeasible.
    The quality of ground water in the Broad Brook Basin is generally 
excellent, but both the highly permeable nature of the aquifer material 
and the shallow depths to the water table reduce the capacity for 
pollution attention, making the aquifer vulnerable to contamination. 
Ground water contamination by Trichloroethylene (TCE) has forced the 
Town of Easthampton to take a well off-line and investigate treatment 
options, and has forced the City of Holyoke to close a well 
permanently. Local government has acted to protect the water quality of 
the Barnes Aquifer through formation of a multi-town Barnes Aquifer 
Protection Advisory Committee and adoption of an Aquifer Protection 
District in Easthampton. The residents of Easthampton are considering 
amendment of the Aquifer Protection District to comply with more recent 
State Drinking Water Regulations. The petitioners think that a Sole 
Source Aquifer Designation would augment their ground water protection 
efforts by providing a forum for public education and by increasing 
awareness about the importance and vulnerability of the aquifer which 
overlies the municipal boundaries of three communities.

IV. Information Utilized in Determination

    The information utilized in this determination includes: the 
petition submitted to the EPA--New England Water Management Division by 
the Barnes Aquifer Protection Advisory Committee and the Town of 
Easthampton, letters of support received during the public comment 
period, and public comments received during the public hearing. This 
information is available to the public and may be inspected at the 
address listed above.

V. Project Review

    The EPA--New England office is working with the federal agencies 
most likely to provide financial assistance to projects in the project 
review area. Interagency procedures and Memoranda [[Page 20991]] of 
Understanding have been developed through which the EPA will be 
notified of proposed commitments by federal agencies to projects which 
could contaminate the Broad Brook Basin of the Barnes Aquifer. The EPA 
will evaluate such projects, and where necessary, conduct an in-depth 
review, including soliciting public comments when appropriate. Should 
the Regional Administrator determine that a project may contaminate the 
aquifer through its recharge zone so as to create a significant hazard 
to public health, no commitment for federal financial assistance may be 
entered into for that project. However, a commitment for federal 
financial assistance may, if authorized under another provision of law, 
be entered into to plan or design the project to ensure that it will 
not contaminate the aquifer. Included in the review of any federal 
financially assisted projects will be the coordination with state and 
local agencies and the project's developers. Their comments will be 
given full consideration and the EPA's review will attempt to 
complement and support state and local ground water protection 
measures. Although the project review process cannot be delegated, the 
EPA will rely to the maximum extent possible on any existing or future 
state and/or local control measures to protect the quality of ground 
water in the Broad Brook Basin Project Review Area.

VI. Summary and Discussion of Public Comments

    A total of three written comments were received in support of the 
petition during the comment period. Four people spoke in favor of the 
petition at the November 15, 1994 public hearing. In addition, letters 
of designation endorsement were received from the Easthampton Water 
Department, the Towns of Easthampton, Southhampton and the City of 
Holyoke, Massachusetts. There were no comments opposing the petition, 
either in written form or at the public hearing.

    Dated: April 10, 1995.
John P. DeVillars,
Regional Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency--New 
England.
[FR Doc. 95-10507 Filed 4-27-95; 8:45 am]
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